Is earth on a countdown to an apocalypse

August 12, 2006

We hope not. We believe that it is vitally urgent for President Bush

to immediately take out the weapons of mass destruction in the hands

of the lunatcis in so-called Iran, a.k.a. Persia, as well as their

partners in crime in Syria and which may also now be in the hands of

Hezbollah, Hamas, et.al.

Iran's Day of Terror?

By Robert Spencer

FrontPageMagazine.com | July 27, 2006

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has frustrated Western

officials by refusing to reply to their offer of various incentives

in exchange for Iran's discarding its nuclear program until August

22. The Western governments had asked Ahmadinejad to reply by June

29; why would Tehran need two extra months?

Farid Ghadry, the president of the Reform Party of Syria, has

offered a provocative explanation for this delay. He asserts that

the Supreme National Security Council of Iran chose the August 22

date " for a very precise reason. August 21, 2006 (Rajab 27, 1427) is

known in the Islamic calendar as the Night of the Sira'a and

Miira'aj, the night Prophet Mohammed (saas) ascended to heaven from

the Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem on a Bourak (Half animal, half man),

while a great light lit-up the night sky, and visited Heaven and

Hell also Beit al-Saada and Beit al-Shaqaa (House of Happiness and

House of Misery) and then descended back to Mecca.… "

The Night Journey, or Miraj, is central to Islam's claim to

Jerusalem as an Islamic holy city. According to Islamic tradition,

Muhammad was carried on a Buraq, a miraculous horse with a human

head, from Mecca to Jerusalem, where he ascended into heaven and met

the other prophets. The only thing the Qur'an has to say about it is

this: " Glory to (Allah) Who did take His servant for a Journey by

night from the Sacred Mosque to the farthest Mosque, whose precincts

We did bless, in order that We might show him some of Our Signs: for

He is the One Who heareth and seeth (all things) " (17:1). There is

no identification of the " farthest Mosque " with any mosque in

Jerusalem in this, but the Hadith is very clear on the

identification of its location with Jerusalem.

The traditions say that Muhammad and the Buraq, along with the angel

Gabriel, went to the Temple Mount, and from there to heaven itself,

where Muhammad encountered various prophets. In the sixth heaven was

Moses, occasioning a dig at the Jews. " When I left him, " Muhammad

says, " he wept. Someone asked him, `What makes you weep?' Moses

said, `I weep because after me there has been sent (Muhammad as a

Prophet) a young man, whose followers will enter Paradise in greater

numbers than my followers.' "

Evidently, however, Muhammad's stories of his journey were not

altogether convincing: even some of the Muslims abandoned their

faith and challenged Muhammad's most faithful follower, Abu Bakr, to

do the same. Abu Bakr was contemptuous: " If he says so then it is

true. And what is so surprising in that? He tells me that

communications from God from heaven to earth come to him in an hour

of a day or night and I believe him, and that is more extraordinary

than that at which you boggle! " The world has continued to witness

such unshakeable devotion from Muslims to this day.

Did Muhammad really go anywhere? According to his favorite wife,

Aisha, he did not: " The apostle's body remained where it was but God

removed his spirit by night. " Nevertheless, the Night Journey has

become firmly embedded in the Islamic consciousness, such that

Muslims today celebrate it as one of the central events of

Muhammad's life. And now, according to Ghadry, Ahmadinejad is

planning an illumination of the night sky over Jerusalem to rival

the one that greeted the Prophet of Islam on his journey. What the

Iranian President, he says, is " promising the world by August 22 is

the light in the sky over the Aqsa Mosque that took place the night

before. That is his answer to the package of incentives the

international community offered Iran on June 6. "

Certainly a nuclear attack on Jerusalem or even an all-out

conventional assault against Israel by Iran would be consistent with

Ahmadinejad's oft-repeated denials of Israel's right to exist and

recent predictions that its demise was at hand. He hinted at the use

of nuclear weapons in his phrasing when he said that Israel " pushed

the button of its own destruction " by finally retaliating against

Hizballah's relentless rocket barrage from south Lebanon.

" Arrogant powers, " Ahmadinejad said, " have set up a base for

themselves to threaten and plunder nations in the region. But today,

the occupier regime " – that is, Israel – " whose philosophy is based

on threats, massacre and invasion, has reached its finishing line. "

Will he attempt to make good on these threats this year on the

anniversary of the Miraj, illuminating the night sky over Jerusalem?

Will Western powers heed Farid Ghadry's words and move to stop Iran

before it is too late?

New York Times 'used fraudulent photo'

Man seen 'dead' in Beirut photo essay appears in other photos from

same scene up and walking around, blog blasts 'unbelievable fraud'

Yaakov Lappin

A man who appeares to be playing dead in a New York Times photo

essay entitled " attack in Tyre, " is seen in other photographs in the

same essay walking around and pointing.

Under the caption of the photo in question, the New York Times

wrote: " The mayor of Tyre said that in the worst hit areas, bodies

were still buried under the rubble, and he appealed to the Israelis

to allow government authorities time to pull them out. "

Question After Question

AP Beirut photo faces questions / Yaakov Lappin

Woman appears 'mourning destruction of her home' in two photographs

allegedly taken two weeks apart in different locations; foreign

media remains largely hostile to Israel

Full Story

The Gate Way Pundit blog wrote: " From the New York Times photo essay

by Tyler Hicks on July 27, 2006 comes this unbelievable fraud! Dead

Guy with no dust shows up with hat in photo no. 2 pointing out

something to the photographer. "

The blog notes that the same man can also be seen " again scrambling

over debris in photo no. 3 and no. 4 . "

In other questions on media images, US commentator Michelle Malkin

notes that the US News magazine's front cover picture of a Hizbullah

gunman standing in front of a blaze, part of a piece

entitled " Lebanon's new ruins, " is actually a photograph taken near

garbage dump.

The photo was taken by former disgraced Reuters photographer Adnan

Hajj.

Meanwhile, Reuters, at the center of a number of controversies

collectively dubbed 'Reutersgage,' has faced fresh questions over

its photographs, after an image attributed to Hajj has also been

credited by Reuters to a different photographer, Issam Kobeisi.

The My Pet Jawa blog asks : " Is Adnan Hajj two people? "

" Is it possible that Reuters is sending two checks to Adnan Hajj?

That his crimes go deeper than simple doctoring of photos? Are the

editors at Reuters that lazy that they didn't notice that one of

Hajj's photos is identical to that of Issam Kobeisi? " Asked the

blog. " Or is this just a mislabeled photo attributed to the wrong

journalist? "

Reuters has so far not responded to requests for a comment.

Questions on Qana

Blogs in the US are continuing to ask questions about images from

the Lebanese village of Qana. The Riehl World site has alleged that

Hizbullah " added to the body count of dead children there. "

" How do you introduce new bodies into the scene of a bomb strike?

The answer may be as simple as you bring them from around the

corner, " the blog said, posting a number of photographs and videos

to back up its assertion.

In one of the videos, Lebanese rescues workers are seen holding a

stretcher with a body on it, putting it down as photographers took

pictures, and then continuing onwards.

" All of these forms of fraud have the same intent: to serve as

propaganda for Hizbullah, and to make the Israeli attacks look as

brutal as possible, " concluded the Zombie Time blog .

Meanwhile, reports have surfaced of Hizbullah members issuing death

threats to journalists who attempt to film them firing rockets at

Israel.

CNN's Richard Engel reported : " At one time, when we were talking

and having a conversation with this Hizbollah representative, he

said, 'look, we're serious, we will kill you if you film these

outgoing rockets. "

A Time magazine employee also reported that " the Party of God

(Hizbullah) has a copy of every journalist's passport, and they've

already hassled a number of us and threatened one. "

This article from Arutz Sheva Arutz Sheva News Service

http://www.IsraelNationalNews.com Delivered Daily via Email,

Sunday thru Friday Subscribe (free):

http://.a7.org/.asp How the Media Enable

Terrorism by Rachel Neuwirth Sunday 6 August2006, A major

segment of the global media is behaving in a manner that makes

terrorism and mass killings more likely rather than less likely.

They enable and encourage terrorist slaughter of innocents by

providing a propaganda bonanza for the terrorist cause. Without

the gain, there would be less incentive for the horrific

behavior. This is true now with Israeli defensive measures

against Hizbullah terrorism, and has been true for many years,

especially during the long Arab-Israeli conflict. Not enough

attention has been paid to media manipulation. It is long overdue

that this be exposed and the media be confronted and held

accountable. The general public derives its perception of the

wider reality beyond direct personal experience via the media.

When the major media all sing a similar tune, the public generally

assumes it is being honestly informed. The internet and talk radio

often challenge the major media, but not everyone has the time or

interest to become well-informed on the many issues and sort

things out, especially when the alternative media also present

conflicting views of reality. The major media can spin and color

stories to suit their agenda. They can rile up the public over

certain issues or hide vital information. When the media riles up

the public, governments can feel pressured to act in one direction

or the other. All this conflicts with honest reporting. A prime

example involves a

http://www.geocities.com/CapitolHill/2527/press102.htm>front page

photo in the New York Times. An angry Israeli policeman is seen

brandishing his police club while standing over a bloodied man on

the ground. The Times caption reads: " An Israeli policeman and a

Palestinian on the Temple Mount. " The photo suggests a

Palestinian so badly beaten that blood was running down his face.

Publishing such an inflammatory photo had to generate extreme

outrage against Israel, and the Times had to know it. But the

caption was effectively a lie. The victim was a Jew beaten by

Arabs. The Israeli policeman was defending the victim. When the

Times was forced to retract, they did it grudgingly and then added

another lie to the story until public outrage forced them to come

clean with the real story. The action of the Times ( " All the

news that's fit to print " ) was so outrageous that a media watchdog

organization was born in response. Please go

http://www.honestreporting.com/ and see " the photo that started it

all " on the top right. Then read the details of how the New York

Times prints 'all the news that

http://world.std.com/~camera/docs/alert/nytimes.html There is no

mention that anyone at the Times was punished. If the once-

prestigious New York Times can be so deceptive, then we are now in

a new era of extreme media dishonesty and we must be extra

vigilant. In the Arab-Israeli conflict, Israel's Arab enemies

long ago developed an effective way to promote anti-Jewish terror

and win the public relations battle in the process. Yasser Arafat

early on employed the tactic of shooting at Jews from behind Arab

women and children, who were used as shields. The Israelis were

caught in a dilemma. Not to fire back meant being helpless to

respond to the ongoing slaughter of Jews, but to fire back meant

unavoidable loss of Arab civilians, including children. And that,

with a complicit media conveniently present (by appointment?) to

see and film, and later to edit. The resulting story would

emphasize the retaliation over the provocation, making it seem as

if Israel was deliberately targeting Arab civilians. Reality would

be a product manufactured to suit. This tactic required the

willingness of Arab leaders to deliberately sacrifice many Arab

civilians in the process of attacking Israel. Many Arabs have long

been brainwashed via their schools, their media and their mosques

to see Israelis, and even all Jews, as monsters bent on their

destruction. This made it easier to keep them compliant with these

tactics. Also, any Arabs who objected could be killed. In Lebanon

today, Hizbullah is employing the same tactic. Their rocket

attacks often originate from within civilian areas, which will

assure http://eureferendum.blogspot.com/2006/07/milking-

it.html>civilian casualties. They, and their supporters, accuse

Israel of deliberately targeting civilians. If Israel really

wanted to target civilians, then it would not take a full week of

intensive bombing to kill 250 people. Many in the media have now

joined the chorus of " disproportionate response " and " targeting of

civilians. " They call, in effect, for a one-sided ceasefire,

wherein Israel ceases and Hizbullah remains free to `fire'. It

would help if Israel and her friends would make it clear to all

that Israel only targets sources of aggression. But the media, by

their skewed reporting, is making it politically profitable for

Hizbullah to locate rocket launchers in the midst of civilian

areas. This reinforces the Hizbullah tactics and increases the

civilian death toll. The major media are thus directly complicit

in enabling this tactic to continue and for more Lebanese

civilians to be killed. If the major media would tell the whole

truth and place the blame entirely on the Hizbullah terrorists,

then it would no longer be politically profitable to continue this

tactic. (People who care might communicate to the media on this

and even send them a copy of this article as back-up.) It would

also help greatly if Israel would explain more clearly that: 1.

It makes great efforts to not attack innocent civilians. 2. It

will target every rocket launcher, no matter where it is located,

and it is the responsibility of Hizbullah and the Lebanese to

remove civilians from that area. It would also help if the

American Jewish leadership would finally wake up and show the

complicity and culpability of the US media in the killing of

Lebanese civilians. This would at least take the political and

public relations profit out of terrorism. The Jihad Against JoeNew

York Sun Staff EditorialAugust 9, 2006URL:

http://www.nysun.com/article/37615To what do the attacks on Mr.

Lieberman speak? As far as we can tell, to no concern more noble

than anti-Semitism and racism, with a smattering of anti-Bush

paranoia mixed in for taste. Just consider the rantings that have

been directed at the senator in the left-wing blogosphere, as

recounted by Democratic strategist Lanny Davis in yesterday's Wall

Street Journal. One commenter on the influential blog DailyKos.com

wrote, " as everybody knows, jews ONLY care about the welfare of

other jews; thanks ever so much for reminding everyone of this most

salient fact, so that we might better ignore all that jewish

propaganda [by Lieberman] about participating in the civil rights

movement of the 60s and so on. " Or this: " Ned Lamont and his

supporters need to [g]et real busy. Ned needs to beat Lieberman to a

pulp in the debate and define what it means to be an AMerican who is

NOT beholden to the Israeli Lobby. " Even so, holding hateful opinions

and acting on them are two different things. The question now is

whether supporters of Mr. Lieberman's opponent crossed that line. It

certainly seems suspicious that Mr. Lieberman's campaign Web site

would crash just hours before polling, taking with it the campaign's

e-mail service including the ability to send get-out-the-vote

messages to voters' inboxes. The opponent, Ned Lamont, has denied

any responsibility, but that doesn't rule out his renegade

supporters, one of whom had already attracted attention last week

for circulating a caricature of Mr. Lieberman in black-face. Given

that the rhetoric Mr. Lieberman's opponents have been spewing is

better suited to a Klan meeting than a senatorial primary, the

senator is certainly justified in being suspicious that something

more than a mere computer glitch is at work.Time and an

investigation will tell, and Mr. Lieberman has already contacted law

enforcement authorities to launch an inquiry. It deserves to be

pursued ruthlessly, while voters and pundits alike will be looking

to the result of yesterday's polling for an indication of where the

Democratic Party is headed. Whatever that indication is, it will be

hard to forget how we have come to this pass. Democrats can no

longer avoid the question of whether they want to be increasingly

beholden to entrepreneurs in bigotry who are purveyors of the oldest

hatred and who approach politics with a perverse fervor and will

stop at no dirty trick to stifle opposing points of view. Except for

a few like Lanny Davis, the response of the party leaders has been

decidedly lame. Iran Plans Answer on Nuclear

WeaponsLast Edited: Tuesday, 08 Aug 2006, 10:45 PM EDT Created:

Tuesday, 08 Aug 2006, 10:45 PM EDT Iran's president plans to

announce the future of his country's nuclear development on August

22. That date is sacred to Muslims, and the timing could be ominous.

Fox 5's Andrea Day

explains.http://www.myfoxny.com/myfox/pages/News/Detail?

contentId=425432 & versionfiltered=1 & locale=EN-

US & layoutCode=VSTY & pageId=3.4.1

In Iran, Arming for Armageddon

By Charles Krauthammer

Washington Post | December 20, 2005

Lest you get carried away with the recent good news from Iraq,

consider what's

happening next door in Iran. The wild pronouncements of the new

Iranian

president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, have gotten sporadic press ever

since he called

for Israel to be wiped off the map. He subsequently amended himself

to say that

Israel should simply be extirpated from the Middle East map and

moved to some

German or Austrian province. Perhaps near the site of an old

extermination camp?

Except that there were no such camps, indeed no Holocaust at all,

says

Ahmadinejad. Nothing but " myth, " a " legend " that

was " fabricated . . . under the

name 'Massacre of the Jews.' " This brought the usual reaction from

European and

American officials, who, with Churchillian rage and power, called

these

statements unacceptable. That something serious might accrue to Iran

for this --

say, expulsion from the United Nations for violating its most basic

principle by

advocating the outright eradication of a member state -- is, of

course, out of

the question.

To be sure, Holocaust denial and calls for Israel's destruction are

commonplace

in the Middle East. They can be seen every day on Hezbollah TV, in

Syrian media,

in Egyptian editorials appearing in semiofficial newspapers. But

none of these

aspiring mass murderers are on the verge of acquiring nuclear

weapons that could

do in one afternoon what it took Hitler six years to do: destroy an

entire

Jewish civilization and extinguish 6 million souls.

Everyone knows where Iran's nuclear weapons will be aimed. Everyone

knows they

will be put on Shahab rockets, which have been modified so that they

can reach

Israel. And everyone knows that if the button is ever pushed, it

will be the end

of Israel.

But it gets worse. The president of a country about to go nuclear is

a confirmed

believer in the coming apocalypse. Like Judaism and Christianity,

Shiite Islam

has its own version of the messianic return -- the reappearance of

the Twelfth

Imam. The more devout believers in Iran pray at the Jamkaran mosque,

which

houses a well from which, some believe, he will emerge.

When Ahmadinejad unexpectedly won the presidential elections, he

immediately

gave $17 million of government funds to the shrine. Last month

Ahmadinejad said

publicly that the main mission of the Islamic Revolution is to pave

the way for

the reappearance of the Twelfth Imam.

And as in some versions of fundamentalist Christianity, the second

coming will

be accompanied by the usual trials and tribulations, death and

destruction.

Iranian journalist Hossein Bastani reported Ahmadinejad saying in

official

meetings that the hidden imam will reappear in two years.

So a Holocaust-denying, virulently anti-Semitic, aspiring

genocidist, on the

verge of acquiring weapons of the apocalypse, believes that the end

is not only

near but nearer than the next American presidential election. (Pity

the

Democrats. They cannot catch a break.) This kind of man would have,

to put it

gently, less inhibition about starting Armageddon than a normal

person. Indeed,

with millennial bliss pending, he would have positive incentive to,

as they say

in Jewish eschatology, hasten the end....

The closest we've come to a messianically inclined leader in America

was a

secretary of the interior who 24 years ago, when asked about his

stewardship of

the environment, told Congress: " I do not know how many future

generations we

can count on before the Lord returns; whatever it is we have to

manage with a

skill to leave the resources needed for future generations. " But

James Watt's

domain was the forest, and his weapon of choice was the chainsaw. He

was not in

charge of nuclear weapons to be placed on missiles that are paraded

through the

streets with, literally, Israel's name on them. (They are adorned

with banners

reading " Israel must be wiped off the map. " ) It gets worse. After

his U.N.

speech in September, Ahmadinejad was caught on videotape telling a

cleric that

during the speech an aura, a halo, appeared around his head right on

the podium

of the General Assembly. " I felt the atmosphere suddenly change. And

for those

27 or 28 minutes, the leaders of the world did not blink. . . . It

seemed as if

a hand was holding them there, and it opened their eyes to receive

the message

from the Islamic Republic. "

Negotiations to deny this certifiable lunatic genocidal weapons have

been going

nowhere. Everyone knows they will go nowhere. And no one will do

anything about

it.

Arutz Sheva News Service

http://www.IsraelNationalNews.com

Delivered Daily via Email, Sunday

thru Friday

Subscribe (free): http://.a7.org/.asp

UNMANNED HIZBULLAH DRONE SHOT DOWN BY IAF

The Israel Air Force shot down an unmanned Hizbullah drone over

Israeli

territorial waters on Monday evening near the Krayot suburbs north

of

Haifa.

Israel Air Force Brig.-Gen. Locker said that the drone was picked up

early by a northern radar station and was downed northwest of Haifa.

According to a Channel 10 TV report, the drone (also known as

" pilot-less aircraft, or PAC " ) shot down by the IAF was carrying 45

kilograms of

explosives. Air force officials denied the report and insisted the

drone was not carrying explosives.

The IDF has been waiting for such an opportunity, said a source

quoted

by Army Radio. The terrorist organization sent drones over Israeli

airspace twice in the past year, with both returning to Lebanese

territory

unharmed.

Israel often uses PACs to gather intelligence and check progress of

IDF

troops during battles with terrorists. Hizbullah sent its first

unmanned drone, the " Mirsad 1 " over Israeli territory two years ago,

in

November 2004.

" You can load the Mirsad plane with a quantity of explosives ranging

from 40 to 50 kilos [88-110 lbs –ed.] and send it to its target, "

said

Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in Nov. 2004. " Do you want a power

plant, water plant, military base? Anything! "

SYRIAN SUCK-UP TO THUGS: USE US AT YOUR PLEASURE

Reuters

BEIRUT - Syria's foreign minister offered yesterday to join

Hezbollah, and said his country's army had standing orders to

respond immediately to any Israeli attacks.

" If you wish, I'm ready to be a soldier at the disposal of

[Hezbollah chief] Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, " Walid Moallem told

reporters on his arrival in Lebanon.

Asked about concerns that the war in Lebanon could spill over into a

regional war, Moallem said, " Most welcome. "

" Syria is readying itself and doesn't hide its [military] readiness.

We will respond to any Israeli aggression immediately, " he added.

Moallem said later, after talks with President Emile Lahoud, " If

Israel attacks Syria by any means, on the ground, in the air, our

leadership ordered the armed forces to reply immediately. "

Moallem, the first senior Syrian official to visit Lebanon since

Syria ended three decades of military presence in April of last

year, criticized a U.S.-French draft of a U.N. Security Council

resolution to end the war.

" This draft resolution is a description for the continuation of the

war because, unfortunately, it's not fair for Lebanon, therefore

it's a plan for the possibility of the eruption of civil war in

Lebanon and nobody, nobody, nobody has anything to gain from that

happening, except Israel, " said the veteran diplomat, who will

attend an Arab foreign ministers' meeting in Beirut today.

Syria, with Iran, is a key backer of Hezbollah.

Reuters admits to more image manipulation

News organization withdraws photograph of Israeli fighter jet,

admits image was doctored, fires photographer. Reuters

pledges 'tighter editing procedure for images of the Middle East

conflict'

Yaakov Lappin

Reuters has withdrawn a second photograph and admitted that the

image was doctored, following the emergence of new suspicions

against images provided by the news organization. On Sunday, Reuters

admitted that one of its photographers, Adnan Hajj, used software to

distort an image of smoke billowing from buildings in Beirut in

order to create the effect of more smoke and damage.

The latest image to face doubts is a photograph of an Israeli F-16

fighter jet over the skies of Lebanon, seen in the image firing

off " missiles during an air strike on Nabatiyeh, " according to the

image's accompanying text provided by Reuters.

Reuters has recalled all photos by Adnan Hajj

Rusty Shackleford, owner of the My Pet Jawa web log , noted that the

warplane in the picture is actually firing defensive flares aimed at

dealing with anti-aircraft missiles.

Caught Red Handed

Reuters admits altering Beirut photo / Yaakov Lappin

Reuters withdraws photograph of Beirut after Air Force attack after

US blogs, photographers point out 'blatant evidence of

manipulation.'

Full Story

In addition, Shackelford says the flares have been replicated by

Reuters, giving the impression that the jet was firing

many " missiles, " thereby distortion the image.

" The F-16 in the photo is not firing missiles, but is rather

dropping chaffe or flares designed to be a decoy for surface to air

missiles. However, a close up (of) what Hajj calls " missiles "

reveals that only one flare has been dropped. The other two " flares "

are simply copies of the original, " Shackleford wrote. " But what

about the 'bombs' in the photo? Here is a close up of them. Notice

anything? That's right. The top and bottom " bomb " are the same. "

Another manipuated Reuters image

Following the accusations, Reuters conceded that a second image it

provided had been manipulated, and released a statement saying it

had recalled all photos by Hajj. " Reuters has withdrawn from its

database all photographs taken by Beirut-based freelance Adnan Hajj

after establishing that he had altered two images since the start of

the conflict between Israel and the Lebanese Hizbullah group, " the

statement said.

The news outlet said that it discovered " in the last 24 hours that

he (Hajj) altered two photographs since the beginning of the

conflict between Israel and the Lebanese group Hizbullah, " Reuters

added.

" There is no graver breach of Reuters standards for our

photographers than the deliberate manipulation of an image " ,

Reuters' statement quoted Tom Szlukovenyi, Reuters Global Picture

Editor, as saying.

'Tighter editing needed'

Reuters also said it would apply " tighter editing procedure for

images of the Middle East conflict to ensure that no photograph from

the region would be transmitted to rs without review by the

most senior editor on the Reuters Global Pictures Desk. "

" Reuters terminated its relationship with Hajj on Sunday... An

immediate enquiry began into Hajj's other work, " the statement said.

Hajj had provided Reuters with several images from the Lebanese

village of Qana, many of which have also been suspected of being

staged .

Other Reuters images have been called into question by blogs in the

United States.

A reader of the Power Line blog , Robert Opalecky, wrote: " I don't

know if this has been brought to anyone's attention yet, but in a

quick search of the authenticated Reuters photographs attributed to

Adnan Hajj, I found the following two. "

The first Reuters image of July 24

" One is from July 24 of a bombed out area in Beirut, with a clearly

identifiable building in a prominent part of the shot. The second is

of the exact same area, same buildings, same condition, with a woman

walking past " a building flattened during an overnight Israeli air

raid on Beirut's suburbs August 5, 2006, " he wrote.

Reuters' second 'Beirut attack' photo, dated August 5

A film released on the YouTube video sharing website compares the

two images, and appears to show striking similarities between the

photograph used by Reuters on both July 24 and August 5.

above story was from ynet

The New York Times vs. Israel.

" Media Accuracy " <mediaaccuracy

The New York Times vs. Israel.

It's time to protest.

Stop reading The Times for at least 30 days

starting May 9th, Jerusalem Day

With Israel fighting for its very survival, we are witness to

shockingly biased reporting by most of the world's mediaorganizations

(The Wall Street Journal, New York Post,New York Sun and Fox News

being notable exceptions).Newspapers, news magazines, television

networks andradio stations constantly ignore history, and downplay

themurderous activities of Israel's sworn enemies.The New York Times

may not be the worst offender butit's certainly the most influential.

Day after day, weekafter week, The Times, the so-called " newspaper of

record " and recipient of numerous Pulitzer Prizes for excellence, has

been consistently guilty of journalistic misrepresentation and

tendentiously biased reporting. Every day one sees misleading

headlines, photographs chosen to elicit sympathy for suffering

so-called " palestinians " at Israel's expense, and disproportionate

space

allocated

to so-called " palestinian " perspectives and spokespersons.

Noticeably missing

are

equal portrayals of Israeli victims of so-called " palestinian "

terror, adequate

reporting of so-called " palestinian " and Arab rejectionism and

intransigence,

and a

reluctance to properly portray the corruption, murderous dictatorship

and complicity of the so-called " palestinian " Authority in its

terrorist

campaign

against innocent Arab and Israeli civilians. To access an independent

study documenting recent New York Times coverage of the

Israeli/so-called " palestinian " conflict, please visit

www.camera.org.

It is time for us to take a stand and send The Times a message that

we

protest their misrepresentation of Middle Eastern realities. We call

upon every reader of thisnewspaper and every person of conscience to

do one or more of the following:

· Call The New York Times (1-800-NYTIMES, option4 and 0 for customer

representative) and suspend your subscription, starting on Yom

Yerushalayim, Jerusalem Day, Thursday, May 9th, for at least 30 days.

It's important to tell the operator that you are doing this to

protest

The Times' biased Middle East coverage. For those who feel that they

must read The Times, consider viewing it on line (www.nytimes.com).

If

you have already cancelled your subscription, call the Times and tell

them why.

· Ask your synagogue or community organization to stop placing

obituaries and public service announcements in The Times. Place them

elsewhere(Jewish Week, Forward, etc.)

· Tell advertisers that you are opposed to their use of The Times for

advertising and ask them to stop.

· Write letters and e-mails to The Times, addressed to the editorial

staff as well as senior personnel, pointing out The Times' errors and

distortions and respectfully request a review of their policy.

Israel is waging a just struggle against terror and the brutal murder

of civilians. The least we can demand of the nation's premier

newspaper is to present the news of that war in a fair, balanced and

unbiased way. The NewYork Times is simply not telling the truth about

Israel. It is our responsibility to tell the truth to The Times.

The Israel Defense Forces are fighting the forces of terror. But

equally important is the battle for the hearts and minds of the

public.

Please do your part by joining the Times protest by logging on to

www.nytprotest.sitegrow.net

Rabbi Haskel Lookstein Fred Ehrman

GUIDELINES FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES BOYCOTT

(please read carefully and distribute)

1.It is imperative that everyone who boycotts the New York Times (and

everyone else), responds to Times' distortions on a

regular, preferably daily, basis.

2.In order to respond, each person must find a way to read the Times.

This can be done by:

a.accessing the Times on the WEB or

b.organizing a media response group and designating a member to e-

mail

Israel articles to other members or

c.having someone xerox Times' Israel articles and distribute them

within your organization or workplace

1.Boycotts should not be pursued lightly - they can work in both

directions. Israel suffers from Arab and European

boycotts.

a.Therefore, the reasons for the boycott should be made crystal clear

- distortions (see list below), not legitimate

criticism. b.To be effective, a boycott should be carried out for a

specific period, not indefinitely. c.A boycott is not a " feel good "

way to avoid responsibility for fighting the media war.

1.Calls, e-mails and letters/faxes should make a specific point, be

in

your own words - not a form letter - and should be

selling your points, never insulting. Always ask for a response.

Communicate with editors and journalists. Initiate a

dialogue and then followup. Educate. Check The Jerusalem Post

(jpost.com) for balanced coverage. See Myths & Facts

by Mitchell Bard (us-israel.org) for background info. For NYTimes

analyses: go to honestreporting.com, camera.org;

email to onisrael.

Be alert for the following types of anti-Israel distortions:

1.false symmetries - " cycle of violence, the violence, intifada, the

conflict, GENOCIDE bombers " rather than so-called " palestinian "

terrorism and

Israeli self defense; Sharon vs Arafat; intentional murder vs

collateral damage; body counts; so-called " palestinian " police state

vs Israeli

democracy 2.double standards - Israel overreacts vs America fights

back in war on terrorism; concern for Muslim but not Jewish holy

sites; " Israeli Kill 6 so-called " palestinians " vs " bomb kills 6 " ;

publicity to

American victims of terror, not Israeli victims;

3.inversions -Israelis turned into aggressors; publicity to homicide

bombers rather than Israeli victims; Sharon, not Arafat called

" hard-line " ; " moderate " Arab states 4.omissions - virulent

so-called " palestinian " /Arab) anti-Semitism on TV, in schools,

mosques, etc.;

Arafat and so-called " PA " conspiracy theories; so-called " PA " and

Arab States as

the real

oppressors of so-called " palestinian " people; for Hamas, etc., all

of Israel is

" occupied territory " ; rewards to homicide bomber families; so-called

" palestinian " terrorism not reported as violations of Oslo; normal

life in

Israel, Israeli democracy; lack of independence for journalists in

the

territories; propagandistic " reporting " by Al Jazeera; shameless

editorializing of European " news " 5.half truths, inaccuracies -

implied Israeli aggression in 1967; " right " of return (there is no

" right " );

6.language - terrorists called " assailants, militants, gunmen,

activists " (language of Israeli officials changed)

7.imbalance in number of articles, pictures, op eds; editorializing

pictures; others…….

New York Times' Contacts for Responding

1. comments line (888) 698-6397; 2. main number (212) 556-1234; 3.

fax

(212) 556-3622; 4.

e-mail: foreign or letters; 5. write: NY

Times

229 West 43 St NY,

NY 10036; Foreign Editor-Roger Cohen; Publisher-Arthur Ochs

Sulzberger, Jr.; see masthead for other editors. "

onisrael

What Is The TRUTH Behind This Photograph?

Below found at http://www.israelnewsagency.com/israelipoliceman.html

" The above misleading photo and inaccurate caption illustrates only a

small fraction of the frightening reality of how much of the world

media is distorting Israel's image. Please write, speakout and pass

this page today onto your local newspaper and television editors,

your

family and friends......Put the international media on high notice

that slander, libel and yellow journalism will not be tolerated! How

could it be that a month ago (September 2000) Israel is lauded at

Camp

David for being willing to compromise way beyond anyone's

expectations

and today in response to riots and so-called " palestinian " gunfire

be considered

the aggressors? Israeli soldiers defending themselves against live

fire, rocks and Molotov cocktails being thrown at them by

demonstrators who use their women and children as " human shields " .

Write to the editors in your area today demanding Fair, Objective,

Balanced and ACCURATE reporting from the Middle East!

To the Editor Mon, 02 Oct 2000

00:15:07 -0500

To the Editor Mon, 02 Oct 2000 00:15:07 -0500

aaronnoach

letters

Regarding your picture on page A5 (Sept. 30) of the Israeli soldier

and the so-called " palestinian " on the Temple Mount - that so-called

" palestinian " is actually

my son, Tuvia Grossman, a Jewish student from Chicago. He, and two of

his friends, were pulled from their taxicab while travelling in

Jerusalem, by a mob of so-called " palestinian " Arabs and were

severely beaten

and

stabbed. That picture could not have been taken on the Temple Mount

because there are no gas stations on the Temple Mount and certainly

none with Hebrew lettering, like the one clearly seen behind the

Israeli soldier attempting to protect my son from the mob.

Aaron Grossman, M.D. 6737 N Richmond Chicago, IL 60645 (773) 743-1194

Mon, 2 Oct 2000 14:54:39 EDT Heshygiss To:

letters CC: aaronnoach, JPeditor

Dear Editor,

Even the typically biased and slanted NY Times middle east reporting

has hit a new low. Since the Times

wishes to convey the belief that the so-called " palestinians " are

all innocent

lambs being tormented by an aggressive

oppressor, it can not even conceive that the wounded and injured are

NOT so-called " palestinians " . The current case in

point is very personal to me. In the Saturday's Times on page A6, the

picture of the " wounded so-called " palestinian " is, in

fact, my nephew, Tuvia Grossman, an AMERICAN Jewish student learning

in Israel. His only crime was being

Jewish. He was not in " crossfire " but merely the target of so-called

" palestinian "

lambs who stoned his cab, dragged him

from the vehicle, smashed his head with stones and stabbed him in the

leg. The Israeli soldier, whom you

obviously wished to portray as victimizing the poor, wounded

so-called " palestinian " was actually saving my

nephew's life. A casual look at the background of the picture can

tell

anyone that it's not the Temple Mount at

all!

I believe that a retraction, in a prominent position in the paper, is

necessary and an apology to the parents, forthcoming.

Howard Gissinger 2809 Avenue S Brooklyn, New York 11229 718-998-

2909 "

August 4, 2006

AOL to Cut 5,000 Jobs in Web Access Business

" Powell owns $13.3 million in AOL stock. His son, Michael Powell,

was one of the five FCC commissioners who approved the colossal

AOL/Time-Warner merger (and he's now Chairman of the FCC). Looks

like Michael will be getting a few extra Christmas presents under

the tree this year! "

http://www.disinfo.com/archive/pages/dossier/id803/pg1/

The Bush Administration

Colin Powell

SECRETARY OF STATE (2001-2005)

· Corporate Connections:

Time Warner; Gulfstream Aerospace; General Dynamics

· Personal Finances

Colin Powell announced after the 2004 elections that he was stepping

down. He was replaced by Condoleezza Rice.

As a civilian, Colin Powell served on two corporate boards:

Gulfstream Aerospace and America Online (which later merged with

Time Warner). Gulfstream Aerospace makes specialty jets for

Hollywood movie stars and for foreign governments, like Kuwait and

Saudi Arabia—two countries Powell got to know well in his role as

chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff during the Persian Gulf War.

The company was bought out by defense contractor General Dynamics in

1999. The former general also earned a windfall when AOL merged with

Time Warner in 2001. His stock in the company reportedly increased

in value by $4 million, although the stock of both companies

plummeted within a few years of the deal. Powell's son, Michael, was

the only commissioner at the Federal Communications Commission who

advocated letting the AOL-Time Warner deal go through without

scrutiny. President Bush eventually named Michael Powell chairman of

the FCC.

Feel free to distribute or cite this material, but please credit the

Center for Responsive Politics.

http://www.opensecrets.org/bush/cabinet/cabinet.powell.asp

Clearly control of American media cannot be entrusted to those

hostile to America. We were horrified to see important Fox News

people turn on a dime,

and go from exposing the Dubai Ports Deals, to supporting them.

What was behind the sudden turnaround at Fox? Was it support for

President Bush? Or, frighteningly, was it directed by something else

entirely?

How could Fox's Bill O'Reilly, for example, go from someone who had

been talking for show after show about border security, to someone

who endorsed the Dubai Ports Deals? What did that endorsement do to

O'Reilly's credibility? What sort of spin was that?

" Roger Eugene Ailes (born May 15, 1940) is Chairman of the

Board, Chief Executive Officer, and President, of FOX News… Ailes

met Richard Nixon when Nixon appeared as a guest on the Mike Douglas

Show. " Ailes also served as: " media consultant for the George H. W.

Bush campaign,… Property Assistant, The Mike Douglas Show, 1962-1965

Producer, The Mike Douglas Show, 1965-1967

Executive Producer, The Mike Douglas Show, 1967-1968

Media adviser to Richard M. Nixon Presidential Campaign in

1968

Consultant in 1984 to President Ronald Reagan

Media Consultant for Vice President George H. W. Bush's 1988

Presidential campaign

Chief Executive Officer, Fox News Channel; 1996-present

Chairman, Fox Television Stations; 2005-present "

source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roger_Ailes

(Mr. Roger Ailes Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

Fox News 1211 Avenue of the Americas New York, New York, 10036)

It might seem from glancing at the situation that Ailes'

relationship to the Bush Family and the support of important Fox

people for President Bush motivated important Fox people to support

the Dubai Ports Deal. But what if it was something else entirely?

We are quite concerned about

the situation at Fox, which sees the embattled Rupert

Murdoch fighting off what may be a takeover attempt by tycoon John

Malone

with the assistance, (at what price???), of Saudi Prince Alwaleed

bin Talal.

Fox is critical in a media dominated by appeasers of arab

terrorists. If Murdoch ends up paying the price of sacrificing Fox's

support for the war against terror, in order to keep Talal's

support, who will be left to bring the anti-appeasement message to

the American people?

" Saudi prince always ready to help Rupert

By Brian Sullivan and James Cordahi in Paris

November 8, 2005

Saudi Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, the world's fifth-richest man, has

declared he

is ready at any time to raise his stake in Rupert Murdoch's News

Corp to protect

existing management from any takeover attempt by Murdoch rival John

Malone.

Prince Alwaleed was commenting on his holdings in News Corp,

Citigroup and Time

Warner during an interview on Sunday at the Hotel George V in Paris "

(Note not

part of article being quoted

the hotel is owned by the prince.)

" On efforts by Mr Malone's Liberty Media to take control of News

Corp and Mr

Murdoch's controversial poison pill defence, he said: " Eventually

this thing

will just have to go away. It's not worth the fight with the

shareholders or the media. There's no need for it.

" If we need to raise our stake in News Corp, it's something we're

willing to do very swiftly.

" We are always fully mobilised to come to the defence of the existing

management. We'll spend whatever is needed to keep this company

independent.

" I am not anti-Malone. I am pro-Murdoch and pro-News Corp. "

The prince owns 5.46 per cent of News Corp, which is controlled by

chairman

Rupert Murdoch, 74, and his family. Prince Alwaleed's stake is

valued at $US2.6 billion ($3.5 billion).

The prince made his last big bet on western companies in 2000 as the

internet

bubble began to deflate. That year he invested $US2 billion in 19 US

stocks,

including $US50 million each in internet companies Amazon,

DoubleClick and

Priceline. He also put $US200 million into WorldCom, which went

bankrupt in 2002.

Prince Alwaleed called the investments his " Millennium Bug " in his

authorised

biography, Alwaleed: Businessman, Billionaire, Prince, written by

former Cable

News Network host Riz Khan and published last month by William

Morrow.

On Citigroup's share price and performance he said: " Citigroup for

the last

three years has stagnated from a price point of view; clearly there

were so many clouds over what was going on at Citigroup.

" The performance of the company itself is incredible. The company

last quarter

flushed almost $US8 billion of profits. The company is doing good. "

On the significance of his ventures with Deutsche Bank and HSBC

Holdings plc:

" My alliance with HSBC is very much Africa continent-based. With

Deutsche Bank,

it only covers Saudi Arabia and the Middle East.

" I go where my interests are. There's no doubt that HSBC helps us a

lot in the

African continent and Deutsche Bank will help us a lot in Saudi

Arabia and the Gulf region.

" But this will never, ever take away from my international alliance

and global link with Citigroup.

" Once we get involved in a major holding, as in Citigroup, the

likelihood of us

getting involved internationally and globally in another

international bank is remote. "

On reports that he may start an investment fund with Citigroup

chairman Sandy Weill:

" Whatever Sandy gives me I will look at very seriously. "

On the outlook for Apple Computer: " Our holding was around 5 per

cent. We are

keeping Apple as one of our core investments. We are not adding at

this stage.

" The benefit of the iPod and all that Steve Jobs has done have

already been put in the price. "

Bloomberg "

Talal has been called " The Red Prince " , he has long been groomed by

Syria to take over Lebanon.

" William Conway Jr., former chief financial officer of MCI

Communications, hooked up at New York's Carlyle hotel in 1987 to form

the company, the Carlyle Group spent two lost years investing in a

hodgepodge of companies. It wasn't until 1989, when the company

brought in Mr. Carlucci, fresh off his two-year stint as U.S.

secretary of defense, that Carlyle got serious in government. In 1991

the company made a name for itself by facilitating a $590 million

purchase of Citicorp stock for Prince Alwaleed bin Talal. " " Last

October,after New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani returned a $10

million gift to

the city from Saudi Prince Alwaleed bin Talal after the prince

criticized Israel in published comments, McKinney issued a public

letter supporting the prince "

Alwaleed bin Talal reportedly believes AOL is the `anchor' of

the Internet. Billionaire Prince Alwaleed bin Talal said Thursday

that

he intends to double his investment in America Online (NYSE: AOL),

bringing his stake to a whopping $2.05 billion (US$)

According to Reuters, PLO spokeswoman Hanan Ashrawi was advised of

the Disney

decision by Saudi Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Bin Abdulaziz Alsaud, a

large

share holder in Paris-based Euro Disney. Walt Disney Co. is

controlling

shareholder of Euro Disney with a 39 percent stake. " There will be

no

reference or presentation at the exhibit that Jerusalem is the

capital of

Israel, " Hanan Ashrawi told Reuters.

Tuesday, September 14, 1999 9:52

(IsraelWire-9/14) According to a report by the Reuters News Agency,

Saudi

billionaire Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal has been assured that the

planned

Jerusalem exhibit at the Millennium Village of Florida's Epcot Center

would not depict Jerusalem as the capital of Israel as originally

planned.

According to the report, the Disney officials assured Saudi

officials that

the planned exhibit which was to show the accomplishments of the

Jewish

State and the Jewish People was to depict Jerusalem as the capital of

Israel. The planned move was met with threats of an international

boycott

by the Arab League and officials in the United Arab Emirates.

The prince is a nephew of Saudi Arabia's King Fahd and has a high-

profile

international portfolio of investments in banks, hotels,

broadcasting, airlines, computers, cars and real estate.

Prince Alwaleed bin Talal reportedly believes AOL is the `anchor'

of the

Internet. Billionaire Prince Alwaleed bin Talal said Thursday that he

intends to double his investment in America Online (NYSE: AOL),

bringing his stake to a whopping $2.05 billion (US$) " The prince

decided to invest more heavily in AOL because he reportedly believes

the company is the " anchor of the industry " and will flourish even

though other high-tech companies are " collapsing and going under left

and right. "

" America Online is the No. 1 Internet company in the world and has a

solid foundation and is making profit, " the prince said in published

reports. " When the dust settles on the dot-com industry, America

Online will be around. "

" SAUDI PRINCE ALWALEED WILL INVEST ANOTHER $1B IN AOL "

Charles Molineaux, Patricia Sabga

11/20/2000

CNNfn; Capital Ideas

CNN is owned by AOL Time Warner.

" ADL Praises Mayor Giuliani for Taking a Principled Stand Against

Saudi's

Remarks on Trade Center Disaster

New York, NY, October 12, 2001 … The Anti-Defamation League (ADL)

today

commended New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani for his unequivocal

rejection of

statements by Saudi Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal criticizing U.S.

policy in the

Middle East as a cause for the attacks on September 11. The mayor

also refused

to accept the prince's donation of funds to the relief effort.

" We commend Mayor Giuliani for standing up to Prince Alwaleed and

rejecting his

tainted and forced rationalizations on terrorism and U.S. foreign

policy, " said

Abraham H. Foxman, ADL National Director. " We thank the mayor for

sending a

strong message to those who continue to degrade the memory of the

victims of the

World Trade Center attack with inappropriate and opportunistic

comparisons to

suffering in other parts of the world. There can be no moral

equivalency for

terrorism, and Mayor Giuliani, in rejecting the prince's offer, has

made that

completely clear. The mayor's wise leadership in the aftermath of

the terrorist

attacks continues to provide reassurance to New Yorkers and all

Americans. "

Prince Alwaleed, after agreeing to commit $10 million to a relief

fund for

relatives of the victims of the September 11 attacks, issued a

statement

criticizing U.S. policy in the Middle East, particularly toward

Israel. " Our

Palestinian brethren continue to be slaughtered at the hands of

Israelis while

the world turns the other cheek, " the statement said, in part.

Mayor Giuliani categorically rejected the statement and indicated

that the city

would not accept the donation. " The people who did it (the terrorist

attacks)

lost any right to ask for justification for it when they slaughtered

4,000 or

5,000 innocent people. And to suggest that there's a justification

for it only

invites this happening in the future. It is highly irresponsible and

very, very dangerous, " the mayor said.

The Anti-Defamation League, founded in 1913, is the world's leading

organization

fighting anti-Semitism through programs and services that counteract

hatred, prejudice and bigotry. " The Carlyle Group, "

http://www.thecarlylegroup.com/eng/index.html

" by the way, today, if you do follow things like The Carlyle Group "

http://www.thecarlylegroup.com/eng/index.html

" and Halliburton, said it plans to raise a billion-dollar fund to

buy, guess what, U.S. infrastructure, including ports. Dubai has

already put some capital into Carlyle's previous $8 billion

investment fund…. "