At long last, somebody from the U.S. Senate has taken notice of the new U.N. Human Rights Council and concluded it is no different than the inept and corrupt organization that it was designed to replace.
The U.N. Human Rights Council has spent the full period of its existence investigating Israeli "violations" of human rights, to the exclusion of all other nations. Of all the nations in the world, Israel is the only one to earn the special status of being permanently placed on the UNHRC's monthly agenda. First, the UNHRC examines Israel, and then, if there is any time left, they go to new business. To date, there's been no time left.
Sen. Norm Coleman of Minnesota has had enough: "You've got countries like North Korea, Burma, Zimbabwe where you have state-sponsored brutality, and what we have is deafening silence," he told Haaretz. Last month, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee approved legislation advanced by Coleman aimed at cutting off funding to the UNHRC.
The UNHRC is getting a bit of attention among the Washington establishment, as well.
Assistant Secretary of State Kristen Silverberg called the council's first year a serious disappointment. She reproached member states for abandoning their responsibility ...   more »

By Barbara Opall-Rome

   
BALADIA CITY, Israel — In a new, elaborate training center in the Negev desert, Israeli troops — and someday, U.S. Marines and soldiers — are preparing for the wide range of urban scenarios they may confront.
Here, at Israel’s new National Urban Training Center, the Israeli Defense Force’s Ground Forces Command is preparing forces to fight in four theaters: Gaza, Lebanon, the West Bank and Syria.
Built by the Army Corps of Engineers and funded largely from U.S. military aid, the 7.4-square-mile generic city — balad, in Arabic, means village — consists of 1,100 basic modules that can be reconfigured by mission planners to represent specific towns.
It’s a much smaller, IDF-tailored version of the Army’s Joint Readiness Training Center, the sprawling 100,000-acre simulated microcosm of the Middle East used to train infantry brigade task forces deployed in the region. And while Baladia City won’t feature all the pyrotechnic bells and whistles of the Fort Polk, La., facility, it will offer the same high-fidelity simulated battlefield technologies, force identification and location systems, and debriefing capabilities, officers here said.
“Combat units from platoon up to brigade level will train in an environment that simulates the real ...   more »

by Rabbi Shraga Simmons
Not sure how to begin? Look no further!
The key to a meaningful Shabbat experience is that it shouldn't feel just like "any other day." Rather, we want to create a special mood. This means getting dressed up in our nicest (or favorite) clothes, buying or preparing our favorite foods, and setting aside uninterrupted time to reflect and appreciate what our lives are really all about.
How do we break loose from the whirling weekday pattern and get into a "Shabbat-state-of-mind"? The key is to remove outside distractions. If you're just beginning, try going through all of Friday night with no canned entertainment: no TV, no radio, no movies. If you're really brave, no telephone either! This helps pulls us out of the regular weekday cycle, and propel us into "The Shabbat Dimension."
Here are the basic steps of turning Friday night into Shabbos. Click on the links for more detailed "how-to" articles.
1) Candle Lighting. The image of a Jewish woman kindling her Sabbath candles is a timeless symbol of Judaism. Eighteen minutes before sunset, we light the candles, inviting peace and harmony into the home, infusing the atmosphere with physical and spiritual light.
Candle ...   more »

Ronen Bergman presents new revelations, offers comprehensive review of Israel's struggle against Iranian threat
Yigal Walt
Everything you wanted to know about Iran but were afraid to ask: In recent years we have seen the emergence of a growing, multifaceted Iranian threat to Israel. Ranging from the support it offers terror groups to its nuclear ambitions; Tehran increasingly appears
to be on a collision course with the Jewish State, and possibly with the entire western world.  
But what do we know about Iran? What are the key elements that direct its anti-Israel policies? And what efforts have Israel's intelligence arms and security forces undertaken in order to counter the growing threat? Some answers to these and many other questions can be found in "The Point of No Return," a comprehensive account of Israel's struggle against both Iran and Hizbullah by Ronen Bergman.  
Bergman, a regular contributor to Yedioth Ahronoth and Ynetnews who is increasingly establishing himself as one of Israel's foremost security and terrorism experts, based his work on hundreds of conversations with senior officials in Israel and abroa,  as well as thousands of previously unpublished documents. The fascinating result is a book that reads partly like a ...   more »

In march marking two years since disengagement, evacuees break through police barrier, leading to a few arrests; four evacuees entering Palestinian territory are rescued by IDF. 'Eventually, we will return home', says Elei Sinai evacuee

Shmulik Hadad
Hundreds of Gush Katif evacuees, mostly youths, marched toward the evacuated settlements Nisanit and Elei Sinai in the northern Gaza Strip on Thursday, marking two years since the disengagement.  
Upon arriving at the Nativ Ha'asara community, some of the marchers broke through the police barrier in the area and managed to reach the fence which separates between the community and the remains of Elei Sinai and Nisanit.  
Gush Katif evacuees: Return is a matter of time  / Anat Bereshkovsky  
Former residents of Jewish settlement bloc mark two-year anniversary of Gaza pullout with rallies in Kisufim, Netivot, Sderot. Many still feel abandoned by government      
Hundreds of police officers were sent to the area and clashes broke out between officers and marchers, a few of which were apprehended for investigation.  
Later Thursday, IDF forces rescued four marchers who had managed to cross the border fence into the northern Gaza Strip. Military sources said that the four climbed over the fence ...   more »