20 aug 2019
US Muslim Congresswoman Ilhan Omar
Democratic Representative Ilhan Omar has said that billions of dollars of US aid to Israel should be tied to its treatment of Palestinians, urging Washington to reconsider the funds to the Tel Aviv regime which is engaged in oppression of the Palestinian people.
Omar on Monday said that Congress should reconsider the annual US aid allocated to Israel, after the regime banned Muslim Congresswomen Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib from travelling to Jerusalem al-Quds and the occupied West Bank.
"We give Israel more than $3 [billion] in aid every year. This is predicated on them being an important ally in the region and the only democracy in the Middle East. But denying a visit to duly elected members of Congress is not consistent with being an ally, and denying millions of people freedom of movement or expression or self-determination is not consistent with being a democracy," Omar said at the press conference in St. Paul, Minn.
Omar, a member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, also stated that US aid should be contingent upon Israel's activity in Palestine.
"We must be asking, as Israel's ally, that [Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu’s government stop the expansion of settlements on Palestinian lands and ensure full rights for Palestinians if we are to give them aid," Omar said.
US military aid to Israel has skyrocketed over the past several years while the regime’s forces are engaged in blatant human rights violations against Palestinians in Gaza and elsewhere.
The United States and Israel signed an agreement in September 2016 to give Israel $38 billion in military assistance over the next decade, the largest such aid package in US history.
Israel announced on Thursday that it would prevent a visit by Tlaib and Omar, both Democratic members of the US House of Representatives, over their criticism of Israel.
The decision by Israel appears to be an unprecedented move against American members of Congress. Even AIPAC, a pro-Israel lobbying group in Washington, criticized Israel for barring the pair from traveling there.
Omar on Monday expressed gratitude for the "solidarity" from other Democrats who have expressed outrage at Israel's decision to ban her and Tlaib.
Representatives Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) and Mark Pocan (D-Wis.) have called for refraining from visiting Israel until all members of Congress can go.
But Omar urged fellow lawmakers to visit Israel to conduct congressional oversight to see what happens with “millions of dollars” the US sends to Israel in aid.
"It is my belief that, as legislators, we have an obligation to see the reality there for ourselves. We have a responsibility to conduct oversight over our government's foreign policy and what happens with the millions of dollars we send in aid. So I would encourage my colleagues to visit," Omar said.
Related: US should stop funding Israel: Republican Senator Rand Paul
Democratic Representative Ilhan Omar has said that billions of dollars of US aid to Israel should be tied to its treatment of Palestinians, urging Washington to reconsider the funds to the Tel Aviv regime which is engaged in oppression of the Palestinian people.
Omar on Monday said that Congress should reconsider the annual US aid allocated to Israel, after the regime banned Muslim Congresswomen Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib from travelling to Jerusalem al-Quds and the occupied West Bank.
"We give Israel more than $3 [billion] in aid every year. This is predicated on them being an important ally in the region and the only democracy in the Middle East. But denying a visit to duly elected members of Congress is not consistent with being an ally, and denying millions of people freedom of movement or expression or self-determination is not consistent with being a democracy," Omar said at the press conference in St. Paul, Minn.
Omar, a member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, also stated that US aid should be contingent upon Israel's activity in Palestine.
"We must be asking, as Israel's ally, that [Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu’s government stop the expansion of settlements on Palestinian lands and ensure full rights for Palestinians if we are to give them aid," Omar said.
US military aid to Israel has skyrocketed over the past several years while the regime’s forces are engaged in blatant human rights violations against Palestinians in Gaza and elsewhere.
The United States and Israel signed an agreement in September 2016 to give Israel $38 billion in military assistance over the next decade, the largest such aid package in US history.
Israel announced on Thursday that it would prevent a visit by Tlaib and Omar, both Democratic members of the US House of Representatives, over their criticism of Israel.
The decision by Israel appears to be an unprecedented move against American members of Congress. Even AIPAC, a pro-Israel lobbying group in Washington, criticized Israel for barring the pair from traveling there.
Omar on Monday expressed gratitude for the "solidarity" from other Democrats who have expressed outrage at Israel's decision to ban her and Tlaib.
Representatives Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) and Mark Pocan (D-Wis.) have called for refraining from visiting Israel until all members of Congress can go.
But Omar urged fellow lawmakers to visit Israel to conduct congressional oversight to see what happens with “millions of dollars” the US sends to Israel in aid.
"It is my belief that, as legislators, we have an obligation to see the reality there for ourselves. We have a responsibility to conduct oversight over our government's foreign policy and what happens with the millions of dollars we send in aid. So I would encourage my colleagues to visit," Omar said.
Related: US should stop funding Israel: Republican Senator Rand Paul
14 aug 2019
The 'Bird' anti-drone system
ELTA planning 'sophisticated upgrade' to its current 'Drone Guard' system, which has sold to defense agencies all over the world; the aircraft will be able to identify the target's flight path and fly directly into it
While the IDF has not yet come up with its own proven operational response to enemy drones, a subsidiary of Israel Aerospace Industries, ELTA Systems, has already sold 100 "Drone Guard" systems to a number of foreign defense agencies.
The system detects and brings down drones using frequency blocking and electronic warfare, but a new upgrade, set to be introduced in the coming months, involves a "suicide" drone called the Bird that brings down enemy UAVs hovercraft by identifying their flight path and flying into them.
Now a new upgrade, which is being introduced in the coming months, should bolster the response to the threat - a "suicide" drone called the Bird that brings down enemy UAVs hovercraft after identifying their flight path.
The new system independently identifies a single drone or a group upon takeoff, can classify them by type and even predict the flight path.
The system uses not only radar but also a combination of optical tools that help to differentiate between the drone and other craft in the air, should the enemy attempt to deceive the system with balloons, kites and even rounds of bullets fired into the air.
ELTA has also developed an innovative capability to "steal" a drone, which has not yet been fully operationalized.
ELTA planning 'sophisticated upgrade' to its current 'Drone Guard' system, which has sold to defense agencies all over the world; the aircraft will be able to identify the target's flight path and fly directly into it
While the IDF has not yet come up with its own proven operational response to enemy drones, a subsidiary of Israel Aerospace Industries, ELTA Systems, has already sold 100 "Drone Guard" systems to a number of foreign defense agencies.
The system detects and brings down drones using frequency blocking and electronic warfare, but a new upgrade, set to be introduced in the coming months, involves a "suicide" drone called the Bird that brings down enemy UAVs hovercraft by identifying their flight path and flying into them.
Now a new upgrade, which is being introduced in the coming months, should bolster the response to the threat - a "suicide" drone called the Bird that brings down enemy UAVs hovercraft after identifying their flight path.
The new system independently identifies a single drone or a group upon takeoff, can classify them by type and even predict the flight path.
The system uses not only radar but also a combination of optical tools that help to differentiate between the drone and other craft in the air, should the enemy attempt to deceive the system with balloons, kites and even rounds of bullets fired into the air.
ELTA has also developed an innovative capability to "steal" a drone, which has not yet been fully operationalized.
The Bird system
As well as bringing down an enemy UAV by hitting it with a drone, the system offers other options that are already operational and have proven themselves. These include using blocking frequencies or firing on the enemy drone from the ground with a special sight on a rifle that tracks and locks onto the drone in the air and then opening fire on it.
"One must remember that this is not a threat that is close in seriousness or damage to an anti-aircraft missile or rocket," says a senior ELTA official. "Every anti-drone system has its advantages and disadvantages, so combining them optimizes the solution."
The key challenge in combatting the drone threat is identification, therefore the new system provides 360-degree coverage.
The "Drone Guard" system, which can be used in automatic mode or semi-automatically alongside a soldier, has already proven itself in securing the G20 conference in Argentina in late 2018.
"The system already knows how to adapt well to its environment and differentiate between friend and foe," the ELTA official says.
"The 'Bird' operating against drones will be a sophisticated upgrade."
As well as bringing down an enemy UAV by hitting it with a drone, the system offers other options that are already operational and have proven themselves. These include using blocking frequencies or firing on the enemy drone from the ground with a special sight on a rifle that tracks and locks onto the drone in the air and then opening fire on it.
"One must remember that this is not a threat that is close in seriousness or damage to an anti-aircraft missile or rocket," says a senior ELTA official. "Every anti-drone system has its advantages and disadvantages, so combining them optimizes the solution."
The key challenge in combatting the drone threat is identification, therefore the new system provides 360-degree coverage.
The "Drone Guard" system, which can be used in automatic mode or semi-automatically alongside a soldier, has already proven itself in securing the G20 conference in Argentina in late 2018.
"The system already knows how to adapt well to its environment and differentiate between friend and foe," the ELTA official says.
"The 'Bird' operating against drones will be a sophisticated upgrade."
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Hindu nationalist prime minister Narendra Modi, left, has been emulating Israeli tactics to repress opposition to Indian rule in Kashmir
Palestinians are calling for solidarity with Kashmir following the Indian government’s move to revoke the state’s autonomy while imposing an unprecedented lockdown. “As Palestinians, we deeply feel the suffering of the people in Kashmir under military repression that in so many cases is similar to Israeli forms of subjugation and control,” the Palestinian BDS National Committee (BNC) said on Tuesday. |
The BNC is the steering group for the boycott, divestment and sanctions campaign for Palestinian rights.
The BNC notes that for years India has been “borrowing Israel’s methodology and ideology and using Israeli weapons in its control over Kashmir.”
“The Israeli weapons that India uses to oppress Kashmiris have been ‘field-tested’ on Palestinian bodies,” the BNC states.
“Our campaign for a comprehensive military embargo on Israel, therefore, is directly linked to opposing global militarization, including militarization of Kashmir.”
India has in recent years been the largest customer in the world for Israeli weapons.
Eight million “incarcerated”
Earlier this month, India’s Hindu nationalist prime minister Narendra Modi unilaterally revoked Article 370 of the country’s constitution which granted the Indian-ruled part of Kashmir a measure of autonomy.
Modi won re-election in a landslide last May.
According to Indian writer Pankaj Mishra, the revocation of Article 370 is “part of a revanchist fantasy of ‘Akhand Bharat,’ or Undivided India – a vision which includes reclaiming the part of Kashmir ruled by Pakistan.”
“The government prepared for its bombshell … with a massive infusion of security forces into Kashmir, which is already one of the most militarized places on earth,” Mishra states.
“It ordered the house arrests of opposition leaders and evacuation of Indian students and tourists, an indefinite curfew, and the shutdown of all modes of communications, including telephone landlines.”
Indian-ruled Kashmir remains cut off from the world, especially the populous Kashmir Valley.
“You can say that the entire eight million population has been incarcerated like never before,” according to Shah Faesal, a former official in the Indian civil service who now heads a Kashmiri political party.
Indian state media have tried to claim that the situation in Kashmir is “normal and peaceful.”
The government hopes that by isolating Kashmir it can prevent news of its repression of protests from reaching the outside world.
But news has nonetheless come out on how Indian forces are using tear gas and pellet guns against protesters.
“The history of atrocities and human rights violations are not new to Kashmir,” the BNC states.
“Human rights groups have recorded extrajudicial killings, arbitrary detentions, torture, rape, enforced disappearances, mass blindings and suppression of protest and democratic expression, along with legal immunity to armed forces for over 30 years.”
Rule by force
The status of Kashmir has been in dispute since British-ruled India was partitioned in 1947 and gained independence as modern India and Pakistan.
India controls more than half the territory of Kashmir, including the Kashmir Valley. Pakistan controls about a third of the territory, and China the rest.
In 1947, Pakistani militias entered part of Kashmir. Following this, the princely ruler of Kashmir, a Hindu, chose to join his Muslim-majority state to Hindu-dominated, but constitutionally secular, India.
India’s first prime minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, promised that the people of Kashmir would be given a referendum on whether they wanted to remain part of India.
In 1948, the UN Security Council backed the referendum.
However, the plebiscite has never been held and India has ruled the territory by force rather than consent.
Emulating Israel
Modi’s move against Kashmir and its people looks a lot like how Israel has unilaterally annexed Syria’s occupied Golan Heights and Palestine’s occupied East Jerusalem.
Israel now appears to be moving towards annexation of the rest of occupied West Bank.
Since the rise to power of Modi’s Hindu nationalist BJP, India has increasingly turned to Israel as a model for its brutal repression of resistance to its rule in Kashmir.
“Today, the Modi government has literally taken inspiration from Israel’s settlement project to enable forced demographic changes on the ground,” according to the BNC.
Indian government efforts to manipulate the demographics of Kashmir by moving Hindus into the state have previously been described even in Israeli media as “an Israel-style policy of creating settlements in occupied territory.”
Call for solidarity
In addition to the unprecedented repression in Kashmir, Modi’s move is escalating tensions with Pakistan, which like India possesses nuclear weapons.
India and Pakistan have already fought three wars over Kashmir.
“We call for international pressure on the government of India to reverse its latest measures that violate the rights of the people of Kashmir under international law and to recognize and respect those rights,” the BNC states.
It also appeals to “people of conscience in India” to “work towards ending India’s military and security alliance with Israel.”
This would “end India’s shameful complicity in Israel’s suppression of Palestinian freedom, justice and equality,” the BNC says.
It would “also benefit the struggle for the rights of the people of Kashmir, as well as the social and economic justice struggles of the people of India.”
The BNC notes that for years India has been “borrowing Israel’s methodology and ideology and using Israeli weapons in its control over Kashmir.”
“The Israeli weapons that India uses to oppress Kashmiris have been ‘field-tested’ on Palestinian bodies,” the BNC states.
“Our campaign for a comprehensive military embargo on Israel, therefore, is directly linked to opposing global militarization, including militarization of Kashmir.”
India has in recent years been the largest customer in the world for Israeli weapons.
Eight million “incarcerated”
Earlier this month, India’s Hindu nationalist prime minister Narendra Modi unilaterally revoked Article 370 of the country’s constitution which granted the Indian-ruled part of Kashmir a measure of autonomy.
Modi won re-election in a landslide last May.
According to Indian writer Pankaj Mishra, the revocation of Article 370 is “part of a revanchist fantasy of ‘Akhand Bharat,’ or Undivided India – a vision which includes reclaiming the part of Kashmir ruled by Pakistan.”
“The government prepared for its bombshell … with a massive infusion of security forces into Kashmir, which is already one of the most militarized places on earth,” Mishra states.
“It ordered the house arrests of opposition leaders and evacuation of Indian students and tourists, an indefinite curfew, and the shutdown of all modes of communications, including telephone landlines.”
Indian-ruled Kashmir remains cut off from the world, especially the populous Kashmir Valley.
“You can say that the entire eight million population has been incarcerated like never before,” according to Shah Faesal, a former official in the Indian civil service who now heads a Kashmiri political party.
Indian state media have tried to claim that the situation in Kashmir is “normal and peaceful.”
The government hopes that by isolating Kashmir it can prevent news of its repression of protests from reaching the outside world.
But news has nonetheless come out on how Indian forces are using tear gas and pellet guns against protesters.
“The history of atrocities and human rights violations are not new to Kashmir,” the BNC states.
“Human rights groups have recorded extrajudicial killings, arbitrary detentions, torture, rape, enforced disappearances, mass blindings and suppression of protest and democratic expression, along with legal immunity to armed forces for over 30 years.”
Rule by force
The status of Kashmir has been in dispute since British-ruled India was partitioned in 1947 and gained independence as modern India and Pakistan.
India controls more than half the territory of Kashmir, including the Kashmir Valley. Pakistan controls about a third of the territory, and China the rest.
In 1947, Pakistani militias entered part of Kashmir. Following this, the princely ruler of Kashmir, a Hindu, chose to join his Muslim-majority state to Hindu-dominated, but constitutionally secular, India.
India’s first prime minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, promised that the people of Kashmir would be given a referendum on whether they wanted to remain part of India.
In 1948, the UN Security Council backed the referendum.
However, the plebiscite has never been held and India has ruled the territory by force rather than consent.
Emulating Israel
Modi’s move against Kashmir and its people looks a lot like how Israel has unilaterally annexed Syria’s occupied Golan Heights and Palestine’s occupied East Jerusalem.
Israel now appears to be moving towards annexation of the rest of occupied West Bank.
Since the rise to power of Modi’s Hindu nationalist BJP, India has increasingly turned to Israel as a model for its brutal repression of resistance to its rule in Kashmir.
“Today, the Modi government has literally taken inspiration from Israel’s settlement project to enable forced demographic changes on the ground,” according to the BNC.
Indian government efforts to manipulate the demographics of Kashmir by moving Hindus into the state have previously been described even in Israeli media as “an Israel-style policy of creating settlements in occupied territory.”
Call for solidarity
In addition to the unprecedented repression in Kashmir, Modi’s move is escalating tensions with Pakistan, which like India possesses nuclear weapons.
India and Pakistan have already fought three wars over Kashmir.
“We call for international pressure on the government of India to reverse its latest measures that violate the rights of the people of Kashmir under international law and to recognize and respect those rights,” the BNC states.
It also appeals to “people of conscience in India” to “work towards ending India’s military and security alliance with Israel.”
This would “end India’s shameful complicity in Israel’s suppression of Palestinian freedom, justice and equality,” the BNC says.
It would “also benefit the struggle for the rights of the people of Kashmir, as well as the social and economic justice struggles of the people of India.”
This picture taken on March 30, 2019, shows an Iron Dome defense system battery, designed to intercept and destroy incoming short-range rockets and artillery shells, in the southern Israeli town of Ashdod
The US army has formally signed a contract to purchase two Iron Dome missile systems from Israel, according to a report.
America’s military magazine, Defense News, said in a report on Tuesday that the US Defense Department had finalized a deal to buy two batteries of the Israeli-made Iron Dome missile system for its interim cruise missile defense capability.
The report said the contract was signed in the last few weeks and that Israel and the US are currently in talks on transferring the systems to America.
“Now that the contract is set in stone, the Army will be able to figure out delivery schedules and details in terms of taking receipt of the systems,” the military magazine said.
Defense News added that the Israeli-made Iron Dome is meant as an interim missile defense solution for the US but it could turn into a permanent one depending on its performance in the field.
The purchase deal, initially announced earlier in the year, has been hailed as historic, marking the first time Israel has sold a standalone weapons system to Washington.
“A great achievement for Israel, this is yet another expression of the strengthening of our strong alliance with the US,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in February.
The Iron Dome has been co-developed by American company Raytheon and Israeli defense firm Rafael. It is partly manufactured in the United States.
The Iron Dome is claimed to be capable of detecting, assessing and intercepting a variety of shorter-range targets such as rockets, artillery and mortars.
The system was originally developed to counter small rockets that Hamas and other Palestinian resistance groups fired into Israeli occupied territories in retaliation for the regime's crimes against Palestinians.
The Iron Dome has proven largely ineffective in serving that purpose.
The US army has formally signed a contract to purchase two Iron Dome missile systems from Israel, according to a report.
America’s military magazine, Defense News, said in a report on Tuesday that the US Defense Department had finalized a deal to buy two batteries of the Israeli-made Iron Dome missile system for its interim cruise missile defense capability.
The report said the contract was signed in the last few weeks and that Israel and the US are currently in talks on transferring the systems to America.
“Now that the contract is set in stone, the Army will be able to figure out delivery schedules and details in terms of taking receipt of the systems,” the military magazine said.
Defense News added that the Israeli-made Iron Dome is meant as an interim missile defense solution for the US but it could turn into a permanent one depending on its performance in the field.
The purchase deal, initially announced earlier in the year, has been hailed as historic, marking the first time Israel has sold a standalone weapons system to Washington.
“A great achievement for Israel, this is yet another expression of the strengthening of our strong alliance with the US,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in February.
The Iron Dome has been co-developed by American company Raytheon and Israeli defense firm Rafael. It is partly manufactured in the United States.
The Iron Dome is claimed to be capable of detecting, assessing and intercepting a variety of shorter-range targets such as rockets, artillery and mortars.
The system was originally developed to counter small rockets that Hamas and other Palestinian resistance groups fired into Israeli occupied territories in retaliation for the regime's crimes against Palestinians.
The Iron Dome has proven largely ineffective in serving that purpose.
