Iran Celebrates "National Nuclear Day"

by the end of this year, the ayatollahs could very well have their hands on the ultimate weapon of mass destruction
This past Monday, April 9th, may just go down as a turning point in the history of the Middle East.

Just as he had been promising for months, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad announced a dramatic expansion of Teheran's ability to enrich uranium, triumphantly declaring the operation of 3,000 centrifuges at the Natanz nuclear facility in central Iran.

Centrifuges – which spin and purify uranium gas – produce enriched uranium which can be used to build a nuclear weapon.

A few months ago, the London-based International Institute of Strategic Studies estimated that once the 3,000 centrifuges become operational, it would take possibly as little as nine months for Iranian scientists to produce enough enriched uranium to make an atomic bomb.

And so, by the end of this year, the ayatollahs could very well have their hands on the ultimate weapon of mass destruction.

No wonder that Monday was celebrated across Iran as "national nuclear day."

This cannot and must not be allowed to happen. Israel and the US simply can not stand by and watch as Tehran goes nuclear and threatens the entire civilized world.

The would-be Hitler of Persia has made clear that his goal is the destruction of the Jewish state and bringing the West to its knees. The only way to stop this march toward insanity is with military action – fast, furious and fierce. And soon.

Let's hope and pray that the leaders of Israel and the West have the courage and foresight to do what needs to be done, and to do it as quickly and as effectively as possible – before it is too late.

Embracing a Terrorist Unity Government

It is simply scandalous – though hardly surprising – that so many European governments would rush to fawn all over a terrorist regime dedicated to Israel's destruction. But what is truly incomprehensible is that the US would play along with this charade too

Well, it didn't take long for Western governments to lose their resolve and begin talking with the Hamas-Fatah terrorist unity government.

The ink had barely dried on this unholy alliance between the warring Palestinian factions, when senior diplomats began beating a path to the doors of senior Palestinian ministers.

The first to break the taboo against meeting with members of the Hamas-dominated government was Norway's deputy foreign minister, who smiled alongside Hamas Prime Minister Ismail Haniya on Monday in a disgraceful display of political pandering.

That very same day, Hamas of course claimed responsibility for a shooting attack that wounded an Israeli civilian near the crossing point with Gaza. But that didn't seem to bother the Norwegians one bit.

Then, on Tuesday, the US Consul-General in Jerusalem, Jacob Walles, traveled to Ramallah to sip coffee with Palestinian Finance Minister Salem Fayyad. A senior European Union envoy came to town the next day, and a slew of officials – from the Belgian and Swedish Foreign Ministers to the ambassadors of Russia and Switzerland – have now declared that they too will be holding talks with the new Palestinian regime in the coming days.

It is simply scandalous – though hardly surprising – that so many European governments would rush to fawn all over a terrorist regime dedicated to Israel's destruction.

But what is truly incomprehensible is that the US would play along with this charade too.

Hamas, like Al-Qaeda and the Sunni insurgents in Iraq, are a thuggish gang of murderers. Conferring legitimacy upon them by holding diplomatic contacts, press conferences and photo-opportunities with them is not only immoral – it is counterproductive. It sends them the message that they can continue to use violence with impunity, without even being thrown out of the diplomatic cocktail party circuit.

Shame on Europe, and on America too, for embracing – however partially and reluctantly – the government led by Hamas.

Look Who's Threatening to Deport Palestinians...

You won't be reading much about this in the mainstream press, because it doesn't involve Israel
A Middle Eastern government has announced that it is considering a plan to deport untold thousands of Palestinians from their homes, forcibly uprooting them and compelling them to leave.

It won't be the first time this government has threatened such a move – in fact, back in 1995, it carried out those threats, and sent numerous Palestinians packing.

But you won't be reading much about this in the mainstream press, nor will you hear nary a peep of protest from much of the left and its sympathizers over the cruelty and brutality of such a move.

And that's because the government in question – believe it or not – is Libya, which views this as a form of protest against the policies of the new Palestinian Authority (PA) government.

In fact, the PA is so concerned about the possible Libyan move, that PA Minister for refugee affairs Dr. Atef Adouan went public on the issue, telling the London-based newspaper al-Quds al-Arabi this, "We hope that the Libyan leadership will act wisely and with patience. Deporting the Palestinians from Libya would cause greater suffering to the Palestinian refugees."

Further proof, once again, of the cynical and manipulative manner in which the Arab states continue to exploit the issue of Palestinian refugees – and of the selective morality of those who criticize Israel on a regular basis.