ISRAEL-PA AGREE ON ECONOMIC AGREEMENT

KING JESUS IS COMING FOR US ANY TIME NOW. THE RAPTURE. BE PREPARED TO GO.

LAND FOR PEACE (THE FUTURE 7 YEARS OF HELL ON EARTH)

JOEL 3:2
2 I will also gather all nations, and will bring them down into the valley of Jehoshaphat, and will plead with them there for my people(ISRAEL) and for my heritage Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations, and parted my land.(UPROOTED ISRAELIS AND DIVIDED JERUSALEM)(THIS BRINGS ON WW3 BECAUSE JERUSALEM IS DIVIDED,WARNING TO ARABS-MUSLIMS AND THE WORLD).

THE WEEK OF DANIEL 9:27 WE KNOW ITS 7 YRS

Heres the scripture 1 week = 7 yrs Genesis 29:27-29
27 Fulfil her week, and we will give thee this also for the service which thou shalt serve with me yet seven other years.
28 And Jacob did so, and fulfilled her week: and he gave him Rachel his daughter to wife also.
29 And Laban gave to Rachel his daughter Bilhah his handmaid to be her maid.

DANIEL 11:21-23
21 And in his estate shall stand up a vile person, to whom they shall not give the honour of the kingdom: but he shall come in peaceably, and obtain the kingdom by flatteries.
23 And after the league made with him he shall work deceitfully: for he shall come up, and shall become strong with a small people.
24 He shall enter peaceably even upon the fattest places of the province; and he shall do that which his fathers have not done, nor his fathers' fathers; he shall scatter among them the prey, and spoil, and riches: yea, and he shall forecast his devices against the strong holds, even for a time.

DANIEL 9:26-27
26 And after threescore and two weeks(62X7=434 YEARS+7X7=49 YEARS=TOTAL OF 69 WEEKS OR 483 YRS) shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself: and the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary;(ROMAN LEADERS DESTROYED THE 2ND TEMPLE) and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined.(THERE HAS TO BE 70 WEEKS OR 490 YRS TO FUFILL THE VISION AND PROPHECY OF DAN 9:24).(THE NEXT VERSE IS THAT 7 YR WEEK OR (70TH FINAL WEEK).
27 And he ( THE ROMAN,EU PRESIDENT) shall confirm the covenant (PEACE TREATY) with many for one week:(1X7=7 YEARS) and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease,(3 1/2 yrs in TEMPLE ANIMAL SACRIFICES STOPPED) and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate.

JEREMIAH 6:14
14 They have healed also the hurt of the daughter of my people slightly, saying, Peace, peace; when there is no peace.

JEREMIAH 8:11
11 For they have healed the hurt of the daughter of my people slightly, saying, Peace, peace; when there is no peace.

1 THESSALONIANS 5:3
3 For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape.

ISAIAH 33:8
8  The highways lie waste, the wayfaring man ceaseth: he hath broken the covenant,(7 YR TREATY) he hath despised the cities, he regardeth no man.(THE WORLD LEADER-WAR MONGER CALLS HIMSELF GOD)

ISAIAH 28:14-19 (THIS IS THE 7 YR TREATY COVENANT OF DANIEL 9:27)
14 Wherefore hear the word of the LORD, ye scornful men, that rule this people which is in Jerusalem.
15 Because ye have said, We have made a covenant with death, and with hell are we at agreement; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, it shall not come unto us: for we have made lies our refuge, and under falsehood have we hid ourselves:
16 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD, Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation a stone, a tried stone, a precious corner stone, a sure foundation: he that believeth shall not make haste.
17 Judgment also will I lay to the line, and righteousness to the plummet: and the hail shall sweep away the refuge of lies, and the waters shall overflow the hiding place.
18 And your covenant with death shall be disannulled, and your agreement with hell shall not stand; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, then ye shall be trodden down by it.
19 From the time that it goeth forth it shall take you: for morning by morning shall it pass over, by day and by night: and it shall be a vexation only to understand the report. 

Business arbitration: A milestone for Palestinian statehood?

After years of effort, Israel and the PA agree to a framework that will ease economic cooperation

By David Shamah November 22, 2013, 12:10 am 0-The Times of Israel

Business ties between Israel and the Palestinian Authority have been proceeding apace regardless of security challenges, but that does not mean there have not been clashes. After years of efforts, a mechanism has been established to help businesspeople on both sides resolve disputes. According to Oren Shachor, chairman of Israel’s branch of the International Chamber of Commerce, the new Jerusalem Arbitration Center will help smooth out bumps on the road to greater economic cooperation between Israel and the PA.At a gala event this week, top business people in Israel and the PA, along with Shachor and executives from the ICC, kicked off the project. “The JAC will bring fair, expeditious and cost-efficient dispute resolution to the region and is expected to help rectify ties between Palestinian and Israeli business people,” said ICC chairman Harold McGraw. The project will enable companies to pursue new markets, “attract local and foreign investments, and bring long-term benefits to the legal profession here,” he added.The JAC’s facilitation of business relations between Israel and the PA is being welcomed by both communities. But the project could have an inadvertent side effect. By agreeing to the ICC’s conditions for arbitration, Israel is essentially recognizing the validity of the Palestinian court’s decisions as equivalent to those of any other nation, thus conferring a “back-door” form of recognition of a Palestinian state.Israel is the Palestinian Authority’s biggest trading partner; in 2011, 86 percent of the PA’s exports went to Israel, and under the Oslo Accords — the legal framework that established the PA and sets the rules under which it operates — Israel administers imports for the authority. Currently, trade between Israel and the PA is close to $5 billion.But like political relations, economic ties between Israel and the PA have often been strained. Businesspeople on both sides have complaints: Roadblocks, checkpoints, and other security-related phenomena cause delays for Palestinian workers and businesses, costing them in late fees, lost contracts, spoiled produce and other woes. Israelis who do business with PA businesses complain that they are sometimes stiffed on payments, and that there is no way to enforce contracts and address legal issues.Businesspeople on both sides called for a grassroots solution, regardless of the political issues between their respective governments. Thus, said Shachor, was born the JAC, an arbitration panel based on internationally accepted business principles and administered by the International Chamber of Commerce, which runs arbitration courts around the world for companies operating in different countries with different rules that have a difference of opinion on who owes whom what.The group, which represents hundreds of thousands of companies in 120 countries around the world, has an extensive rulebook on how to deal with disputes of all kinds, making it the right choice to sponsor the JAC, said Shachor, who established the center with PA businessman Munib al-Masri. “We’ve had many discussions on how to go about doing this, and the ICC rules are the best fit,” said Shachor. “Our objective is to make business easier for business people, and life better for everyone, by applying internationally accepted standards to business disputes.”It hasn’t been easy, however. Negotiations on establishing the JAC have been going on for several years, with the goal finally achieved after the Palestinians agreed to enforce official JAC rulings when necessary — which they had been resisting. Even so, said John Beechey, president of the ICC’s International Court of Arbitration, the only way the JAC is going to succeed is if both sides take it seriously and respect its decisions. “If it begins to operate and awards are given and honored, or disputes are referred to courts in Israel or the PA and those decisions are respected, the thing will flourish. If not, then it will fall apart,” he said.But failing to respect those decisions would be very short-sighted, Beechey said. “Trade is over $4 billion now, but there is much more potential, and this could certainly significantly increase that volume, bring benefit to both sides.” Beechey would not say which side, in his opinion, was more likely to break the agreement. “My mission is to do something that will succeed and benefit everyone, and I believe the JAC can do that,” he added.The JAC’s international arbitration committee will include nine members, including its president, Rifat Hisarciklioglu, who is also president of ICC Turkey. Israel and the PA will supply two of the members, and the others will be nominated by Hisarciklioglu. Disputes will be handled by the ICC offices in Ramallah and Tel Aviv, depending on the location of the complaining parties.The arrangement may be good for business, but it contains a sensitive political element in that it gives both Israeli and Palestinian courts equal jurisdictional rights over disputes. In essence, the JAC paves the way for an important element of Palestinian statehood — an acknowledgement by Israel of the legitimacy of these courts’ decisions in international venues.That may be an even more powerful element of statehood than the recognition of Palestine by the UN General Assembly, UNESCO, and other international forums in recent years. For the first time, Israeli companies and courts will be expected to regard Palestinian court decisions as legal and binding within the context of Israeli law, as it would any other state.How the government might feel about this isn’t clear, but it’s just fine as far as Shachor, who helped negotiate several agreements with the PA, is concerned. “I can’t say whether or not the PA sees this as a strategy for international recognition. The JAC is about improving the situation of Palestinians and helping business.” But if it does, Shachor is fine with it. “I believe in the two state solution. The Palestinians are interested in this in part because it will improve their international standing,” he added. “They want to be accepted in the international community.”

Palestinian negotiator Ishtayeh insists on resignation

Palestinians were wrong to forgo UN redress before negotiations began, says PLO official Hanan Ashrawi

By Elhanan Miller November 21, 2013, 10:38 pm 4-The Times of Israel

Palestinian negotiator Mohammed Ishtayeh is insisting on resigning his post and will not participate in the upcoming negotiation rounds with Israel next week, Ma’an news agency reported on Thursday. “Knowledgeable sources” told the independent news agency that Ishtayeh will be replaced by a yet unnamed Palestinian official and join chief negotiator Saeb Erekat, who will remain in his position despite having officially resigned on October 31.Palestinian officials, including negotiator Erekat, have been voicing mounting criticism of Israel over its building in West Bank settlements and demolition of houses in East Jerusalem.On Thursday, PLO Executive Committee member Hanan Ashrawi called on the Palestinian leadership in a radio interview to “prepare to turn to the UN without waiting for the failure of negotiations with Israel,” Palestinian daily Al-Quds reported.“Israel defies the Americans by promising them to slow settlement construction while actually expediting it. Therefore we must turn to the UN,” Ashrawi told the official Voice of Palestine Radio. “In my opinion, we should have turned to the UN before Secretary of State John Kerry launched his initiative, because Israel takes advantage of this process to expand settlements.”

Palestinian politician Hanan Ashrawi (photo credit: Miriam Alster/FLASH90)

The Palestinians committed not to appeal to international fora against Israel during the 9-month negotiation period in return for Israel’s release of 104 Palestinian prisoners detained before the signing of the Oslo Peace Accords in September 1993. The talks resumed in late July, and Israel has freed 52 of the prisoners, most of them jailed for terrorist killings, in two of four scheduled group releases.Refusing to accept the negotiators’ resignation, PA President Mahmoud Abbas declared on November 17 that negotiations will run their full course “regardless of developments on the ground.”That position did not prevent the Palestinian leader from harshly criticizing Israeli policies at the Afro-Arab summit in Kuwait earlier this week. During his speech Tuesday, Abbas said that Israel’s “routine” attacks on Islamic and Christian holy sites in Jerusalem presented ”the greatest threat to the chances of peace in Palestine and the region.”

JEREMEIAH 49:35-37 (IN IRAN AT THE BUSHEHR OR ARAK NUKE SITE SOME BELIEVE)
35  Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Behold, I will break the bow of Elam,(IRAN/BUSHEHR NUCLEAR SITE) the chief of their might.(MOST DANGEROUS NUKE SITE IN IRAN)
36  And upon Elam will I bring the four winds from the four quarters of heaven,(IRANIANS SCATTERED OR MASS IMIGARATION) and will scatter them toward all those winds; and there shall be no nation whither the outcasts of Elam shall not come.(WORLD IMMIGRATION)
37  For I will cause Elam (IRAN-BUSHEHR NUKE SITE) to be dismayed before their enemies, and before them that seek their life: and I will bring evil upon them, even my fierce anger,(ISRAELS NUKES POSSIBLY) saith the LORD; and I will send the sword after them, till I have consumed them:(IRAN AND ITS NUKE SITES DESTROYED)

Little progress seen in second day of nuclear talks

Statements from both Western officials and sources in Tehran suggest disagreement over right to enrich uranium standing in the way of deal

By AP and Times of Israel staff November 22, 2013, 12:14 am 1

GENEVA — A second day of nuclear talks in Geneva ended Thursday with both sides indicating substantive issues still stood in the way of a deal between Iran and six world powers.The day saw negotiators try to fine-tune a draft agreement that would limit Tehran’s atomic program in return for easing some sanctions. Iran’s ability to produce nuclear fuel and relief for Iran’s oil and banking sectors appeared to be among the sticking points.Renewed opposition from influential members of the US Congress to any deal they feel gives the Iranians too much for too little complicated the diplomatic maneuvering. The Democratic-led Senate signaled Thursday it would only give President Barack Obama until next month before pressing ahead with new Iran sanctions, and a key Republican introduced legislation to limit the president’s future negotiating ability with Tehran.Participants at the talks refused to spell out what was standing in the way of a deal. But Iranian statements and remarks from Western officials suggested they included finding mutually acceptable language on whether Iran has a right to enrich uranium, a technology that can produce both reactor fuel and nuclear warhead material.Sanctions relief was also an issue.The sides are scheduled to meet again Friday.

The talks group six world powers and Iran. But negotiators for the six — the United States, Russia, China, Britain, France and Germany — were reduced to a side role Thursday, with top European Union diplomat Catherine Ashton shuttling between them and Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif as the two tried to chip away at differences.As the talks moved into evening, Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told Iranian state TV that the two sides had “common viewpoints in many cases, while there are serious differences in some cases.”He said talks included possible ways to reduce sanctions on Iranian oil sales and banking.A member of the Iranian delegation said his country recognizes that core oil and banking sanctions could not be lifted immediately but suggested Iran was looking for some relief over six months of the first-step agreement.He also indicated that Iran was ready to discuss a limit on its uranium enrichment but said Iran wants some mention of its right to uranium enrichment — something the United States and its allies have long resisted. The delegation member demanded anonymity because he was not authorized to comment on the closed negotiations.On the world powers side, Ashton spokesman Michael Mann said she is determined to narrow the differences between the sides, according to a Voice of America report.“It was a real meaningful, detailed, substantial negotiation trying to drill down into the details of the text to try and narrow the differences that still existed after the last round,” Mann said.The United States and its allies have signaled they are ready to ease some sanctions in return for a first-step deal that contains Iran’s nuclear program. But they insist that the most severe penalties — on Tehran’s oil exports and banking sector — will remain until the two sides reach a comprehensive agreement to minimize Iran’s nuclear arms-making capacity.Iran says it does not want such weapons and has indicated it’s ready to start rolling back its program but wants greater and faster sanctions relief than that being offered.A senior US official told reporters last week that Iran is losing $5 billion a month in lost oil sales alone and $120 billion in total from all sanctions since their imposition, although he did not give a time frame. The official demanded anonymity in keeping with rules established by the US administration.The White House has not publicly provided a figure, but congressional officials said Wednesday the administration estimates Iran could get $6 billion to $10 billion in sanctions relief over six months as a first step, with additional relief depending on progress made toward a final deal. The officials on condition of anonymity because they weren’t authorized to divulge the estimate publicly.Several Democrat and Republican senators have voiced displeasure with the parameters of the potential agreement, arguing that the US and its partners are offering too much for Iranian action that stops short of a full freeze on uranium enrichment.Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid warned Thursday that the Iranians could prevent any successful deal from emerging without the threat of new oil and financial penalties. He said the Senate must move forward with new sanctions after returning from a two-week recess next month.Sen. Bob Corker, the Republicans’ top member on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, proposed a bill mapping out what a final agreement should look like and seeking to restrict Obama’s capacity to offer sanctions relief.The legislation gives Obama 240 days to conclude the deal and states he can only suspend restrictions on Iran if he certifies that such action advances US national security interests and that Iran is fully complying with existing agreements. It says any final agreement must compel Iran to end all uranium enrichment activity, a condition the Islamic republic has steadfastly rejected.Such moves added pressure on negotiators in Geneva who need to strike an initial deal that satisfies Congress while also meeting Iranian demands of maximum sanctions relief.Even if an interim agreement is reached, prospects for a final-stage deal appear uncertain given the wide gulf between the two sides.“The real problem is defining the broad contours of the end game. (The Iranians) need to know what will happen in the end,” said Ali Vaez, a senior analyst with the International Crisis Group. “I’m optimistic for the short term, pessimistic for the long term.”Warnings from Iran’s supreme leader that compromise has its limits added to the challenge facing negotiators.Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the ultimate authority in Iran, voiced support for the talks Wednesday but insisted there are limits to the concessions Tehran will make at the negotiating table.Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in Moscow to meet with President Vladimir Putin, renewed his demand for a halt to all Iranian nuclear programs that could be turned from peaceful uses to making weapons.Israel wants a settlement that is “genuine and real,” he said.“Israel believes that the international community must unequivocally ensure the fulfillment of the U.N. Security Council’s decisions so that uranium enrichment ends, centrifuges are dismantled, enriched material is taken out of Iran and the reactor in Arak is dismantled,” Netanyahu said, referring to Iran’s plutonium reactor under construction.“They must not have nuclear weapons,” he told a gathering of Russian Jews. “And I promise you that they will not have nuclear weapons.”

Hamas: Our Rockets Will Reach North of Tel Aviv

Senior Hamas figure threatens increased missile range in next clash, tells Israeli leaders to run away.

By Dalit Halevi, Ari Yashar-First Publish: 11/22/2013, 12:46 AM-Israelnationalnews

Illustration: Katyusha missile-Israel news photo: Flash 90

Mushir al-Masri, a Hamas member of parliament and senior figure in the terrorist organization, threatened increased Hamas missile range in the next confrontation, saying that if Israel struck Gaza, Hamas would fire missiles at "targets north of Tel Aviv."Al-Masri, who spoke at an event organized by Hamas students to commemorate a year since the IDF's counter-terror Operation Pillar of Defense, claimed that Israel "will be surprised by the abilities of the Al-Qassam Brigades."On Monday al-Masri similarly claimed that Hamas now has missiles with a 100 kilometer (62 mile) range, putting Jerusalem and Tel Aviv in their sights.
The threats were confirmed last Friday when Colonel Amos Hacohen, head of the IDF's Southern Gaza Brigade, assessed that Hamas continues to greatly expand and improve its missile arsenal. The missiles are largely produced in Gaza following Egypt's crackdown on Sinai smuggling.Al-Masri extolled the young generation of Hamas, saying "these youths present at the event...are a generation educated in the mosques that learned the Koran by heart."The senior Hamas figure then threatened Israeli leaders, and particularly Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, telling them "to run away before the new generation of Al-Qassam Brigades reaches you."Apparently not all of Hamas's next generation need be feared. Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh's granddaughter was sent to Israel for medical treatment on Monday, only to be returned to Gaza that night after doctors couldn't treat her serious digestive tract infection.Al-Masri further stated that "freeing the land (Israel) will not happen except by armed struggle and jihad, not by negotiations."His comments come after Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon said Sunday that there is no difference between Hamas and the Palestinian Authority (PA), the PA merely uses different means to achieve the same goal.

AMERICA (POLITICAL BABYLON)(NUKED BY SNEAK ATTACK FROM RUSSIA)

IN REVELATION 17 & 18 IS THE DESTRUCTION OF THE RELIGIOUS AND POLITICAL BABYLONS.IF YOU CAN NOT DECERN BETWEEN THE 2 BABYLONS IN REV 17 & 18.YOU WILL JUST THINK THEIR BOTH THE SAME.BUT NO-THERES A RELIGIOUS BABYLON (THE VATICAN IN REV 17)(AND THE POLITICAL BABYLON IN REV 18 (AMERICA OR NEW YORK TO BE EXACT)

ISAIAH 34:10
10  It (AMERICA-POLITICAL BABYLON) shall not be quenched night nor day; the smoke thereof shall go up for ever: from generation to generation it shall lie waste; none shall pass through it for ever and ever.

JEREMIAH 51:29-32 (CYBER ATTACK 1ST)
29  And the land shall tremble and sorrow: for every purpose of the LORD shall be performed against Babylon,(AMERICA-NEW YORK) to make the land of Babylon (AMERICA) a desolation without an inhabitant.
30  The mighty men of Babylon (AMERICA) have forborn to fight, they have remained in their holds: their might hath failed; they became as women: they have burned her dwellingplaces; her bars are broken.
31  One post shall run to meet another, and one messenger to meet another, to shew the king of Babylon (NEW YORK) that his city is taken at one end,
32  And that the passages are stopped,(THE WAR COMPUTERS HACKED OR EMP'D) and the reeds they have burned with fire, and the men of war are affrighted.(DON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO)

COMPLETE SILENCE AFTER AN EMP GOES OFF
REVELATION 8:1
1 And when he had opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven about the space of half an hour.

JEREMIAH 50:3,24
3 For out of the north (RUSSIA) there cometh up a nation against her, which shall make her land desolate, and none shall dwell therein: they shall remove, they shall depart, both man and beast.
24 I have laid a snare for thee, and thou art also taken, O Babylon,(AMERICA) and thou wast not aware: thou art found, and also caught, because thou hast striven against the LORD. (RUSSIA A SNEAK CYBER,EMP ATTACK,THEN NUKE ATTACK ON AMERICA)

REVELATION 18:3-6,19-21
3 For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication,(U.S.A) and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her,(U.S.A) and the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies.
4 And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her,(AMERICA) my people,(CHRISTIANS,JEWS) that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.
5 For her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities.
6 Reward her (AMERICA-NEW YORK) even as she rewarded you,(WITH FALSE FLAG TERRORISM) and double unto her double according to her works:(DOUBLE-EMP 1ST,THEN RUSSIA NUKE ATTACKS U.S.A) in the cup which she hath filled fill to her double.(PROBABLY A RUSSIAN CYBER ATTACK WILL SET THE WHOLE SITUATION UP AS RUSSIA HACKS THE USA ARMY COMPUTERS.THEN THE EMP,THEN THE NUKE ATTACK)
19 And they cast dust on their heads, and cried, weeping and wailing, saying, Alas, alas that great city, wherein were made rich all that had ships in the sea by reason of her costliness! for in one hour is she made desolate.
20 Rejoice over her, thou heaven, and ye holy apostles and prophets; for God hath avenged you on her.
21 And a mighty angel took up a stone like a great millstone, and cast it into the sea, saying, Thus with violence shall that great city Babylon be thrown down, and shall be found no more at all.

Experts: US 'Unprepared' for Potential Iran Attack

Security experts gather in Washington D.C., say threat of Iranian 'Electromagnetic Pulse' attack is 'more immediate than most realize.'-By Daniel Perez, Orli Harari, Washington-First Publish: 11/21/2013, 8:43 PM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9mf0LGPCfpw#t=21

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=14xBt_q-32s

As the latest round of negotiations between Iran, the U.S., and Europe fails to yield any meaningful nuclear concessions from Tehran, a gathering of experts in the fields of defense, national security, and foreign policy convened in Washington D.C. on Tuesday (Nov. 19).Held on the eve of the 50th anniversary of President John F. Kennedy's assassination, the event sought to contrast and compare JFK's handling of the Cuban missile crisis to President Obama's response to the current  impasse with Iran, and to see what lessons the former might hold for the latter. The threat posed by the rogue Middle Eastern state, say the panelists - not just to its neighbors in the region, but to the  United States - is far more immediate than most realize.
The meeting was sponsored by EMPact America, a bipartisan non-profit organization dedicated to spreading awareness of the dangers of an Electromagnetic Pulse (EMP) attack, a stratagem that the EMPact's founders allege is within Iran's technological reach, and for which the United States is woefully unprepared.The event, attended by an eclectic mix of pundits and opinion-makers, featured a panel of  speakers drawn from the ranks of academia, the military, and the federal government. The event  commenced with brief but poignant introduction from prominent entrepreneur and EMPact America  founder Henry Schwartz. Following Schwartz's remarks, Frank Gaffney - founder and president  of the Center for Security Policy (CSP), a Washington-based think tank - moderated a discussion  with former U.N. ambassador and political commentator John Bolton, U.S. Air Force Lt. Gen. (Ret.)  Thomas McInerney, Mideast expert and former CIA operative Clare Lopez, and Morton Klein, national  president of the Zionist Organization of America.An EMP attack by Iran, explained Schwartz, would have the power to “shut down our electrical  grid, and thus, end our civilization as we know it.” “Iran has repeatedly called for a world without America,” Schwartz continued, “and has  practiced this type of EMP attack from barges in the Caspian Sea.” He went on to describe various  plausible scenarios for a high-altitude EMP detonation, describing the repercussions as “catastrophic.”“The opportunity and time for diplomatic efforts has been exhausted,” declared Schwartz. “The U.S. must act militarily to stop Iran, to prevent them from becoming a nuclear-armed existential  threat to America.”Schwartz went on to explain how successful stalling tactics on the part of Iran over the last 20 years have brought the U.S. to this critical juncture, and how the ineffectual foreign policy of the Obama administration has exacerbated an already perilous situation, necessitating a “muscular  response” to the Iranian threat.A presentation by foreign affairs expert Frank Gaffney provided additional context for understanding the present situation with Iran. Citing reports by a national German newspaper, Gaffney pointed to a military collaboration between Iran and Venezuela, which would enable Iran to launch an attack on the United States even before obtaining intercontinental ballistic missiles. One  tactic, launching a strike from a cargo ship sitting off the U.S. coast, dubbed the “Scud-in-a-tub,” was  deemed a particularly worrisome possibility. It is an attack vector, says Gaffney, for which we “neither  have any missile defense, nor, for that matter, any warning systems.”Seeking to drive his point home and demonstrate that his concerns were not an exaggeration, Gaffney recalled an incident last July in which a ship, sailing through the Panama Canal under the  North Korean flag, was intercepted and found to be carrying two surface-to-air missiles concealed  within its cargo.

Fox News contributor and former ambassador John Bolton offered insights on the inner machinations of the Iranian regime. He characterized the superficially democratic aspects of Iranian government as nothing more than a ruse. Describing how the true power lay with the Ayatollah Khamenei and the nation's mullahs, he explained the position of Iranian President Hassan Rouhani as that of a secondary leader. Tongue firmly planted in cheek, Bolton helpfully suggested that his listeners think of Rouhani as “Iran's Joe Biden.”
“And when you think of it that way,” Amb. Bolton elucidated, “watching President Obama chase Hassan Rouhani around New York at the opening of the (U.N.) General Assembly in September  was more than an embarrassment; it was a strategic mistake. Because Iran correctly read Obama's efforts, first with the photo opportunity, then to even have even a telephone conversation, as signaling weakness in the American position, as signaling desperation to reach some kind of cosmetic deal with Iran on the nuclear weapons program.”This in turn, claims Bolton, has enabled the mullahs to maintain a significant advantage in the negotiations held since then.Perhaps no one was more outspoken in his criticism of President Obama than ZOA chief  Morton Klein. Klein pointed to a number of political missteps vis-à-vis Iran, including certain appointments by the Obama administration. Chuck Hagel, for instance, President Obama's secretary  of defense, had called “for containment of Iran” for at least a decade. “Containment” of an Iranian  nuclear arsenal, Klein explains, as opposed to preventing them from developing one in the first place. Klein also called the president to task for failing to speak up regarding Iran's sponsorship of terrorist activities (e.g. via Hezbollah) throughout the globe. He also decried certain alleged “anti-Israel statements” by the president to Congress, “the likes of which I don't recall ever hearing during my 20  years at ZOA from any U.S. administration.”“This man is not serious about stopping Iran,” proclaimed Klein, “and is really allowing Iran to obtain nuclear weapons.”Prominent political activist and Jewish community leader Dr. Joseph Frager was also critical of what he perceived as the president's indecisiveness on Iran, but was quick to point out that the Iranian nuclear/EMP threat isn't an issue specific to Israel.“As the panel members clearly explained,  this is an American issue,” said Frager. “And we as American citizens should be gravely concerned for  our own sake, even if not for that of our only real ally in the Middle East.”Keeping with the event's theme, Lt. Gen. Thomas McInerney shared with the audience the benefit of his own experience.A former combat pilot, McInerney actually flew reconnaissance missions over Cuba during the Cuban Missile Crisis. A key difference between the Soviets (and their Cuban proxies) and the Iranians, says McInerney, is that the Soviets were “reasonable.” As essentially rational actors not making their decisions on the basis of some apocalyptic ethos - in contrast to the  Shi'ite fundamentalist theocracy in Iran - the Soviets, McInerney explained, could be counted on to  prefer life over death, and therefore avoid a war that would inevitably prove catastrophic for both sides.McInerney expressed his concern over what he characterized as the “unilateral disarmament” of the U.S. military, as well as the current administration's refusal to stand by longtime U.S. allies like deposed Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak who, for all his faults, nonetheless maintained regional stability, and peace between Egypt and Israel, an unpopular stance with the Egyptian public.Rounding out the panel of experts was CSP senior fellow and former CIA operations officer Clare Lopez. Ms. Lopez placed the Iranian threat in a broader historical context, describing Iran's nuclear pursuits as a means for the Shi'ite country to challenge its Sunni neighbors (in particular, Saudi Arabia) and assert hegemony over the global Islamic community.Although each speaker was able to shed light on a particular aspect of the Iranian regime  and its nuclear ambitions, certain common threads united the presenters. There was a general consensus that the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps are a driving force behind those ambitions.  It was also argued by several presenters that Iran securing a nuclear arsenal would set of a chain  reaction, in which the Arab states would ultimately follow suit, further destabilizing the region.  Though not exactly a stunning revelation, perhaps the most disconcerting point of agreement was that, indeed, President Barack Obama is no JFK.Whereas Kennedy “redeemed” himself from the  displays of weakness that precipitated the Cuban Missile Crisis by projecting an image of strength and  decisiveness (despite the concession of removing U.S. missiles from Turkey), President Obama shows no signs of mending his ways.
Will the Iranian government succeed in their nefarious aims? One thing is certain: Unless overwhelming pressure from the American public forces a dramatic shift in the present administration's foreign policy, we will be doing absolutely nothing to stop them.