By Dan Williams
Sun
Israeli and visiting U.S. forces are holding a biennial air-defense exercise this month but on a reduced scale, partly out of reluctance to stoke tensions with Iran, Israeli security sources said on Sunday.
They said the exercise, dubbed Juniper Cobra, this year involves fewer troops and advanced computer simulations -- rather than live-fire drills -- of anti-missile systems such as Israel's Arrow-II and the American-made Patriot PAC-3.
"Given the regional situation, especially with Iran, and other factors, we have opted for a much lower profile than previously," an Israeli security source said.
Israel and the United States accuse Iran of trying to produce nuclear weapons that could be mounted on long-range missiles. Iran insists its atomic ambitions are peaceful but has defied foreign demands that it curb projects with bombmaking potential.
The showdown has stirred speculation that Israel or the United States could mount military strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities, a move for which Tehran has vowed to retaliate.
Should Washington decide to go it alone against Iran, it may try to garner Arab support by keeping Israel out of the attack.
But continued forbearance by Israel, which is assumed to have the Middle East's only ...   more »

French President Jacques Chirac told Israel at the start of the war in Lebanon that France would support an Israeli assault on Syria, it was reported on Sunday.
Army Radio reported that in the message, which was delivered by Chirac to Israel via a secret channel, the French president suggested that Israel invade Damascus and topple the regime of Bashar Assad. In exchange, Chirac assured Israel full French support for the war.
According to the message delivered from Paris, Syria was responsible for the flare up in the North and encouraged Hizbullah to attack.
"Former prime minister Ariel Sharon had explained to the French in the past that Iran is the main one responsible for Hizbullah's armament in Lebanon, while Chirac saw Syria as the primary one responsible for the matter," former Israeli ambassador to France Nissim Zvilli told Army Radio in an interview.
"President Chirac saw Syria as directly responsible for the attempt to undermine the Lebanese regime," he said. "He saw them as directly responsible for the murder of [former Lebanese prime minister] Rafik Hariri and directly responsible for arming Hizbullah. Likewise, he saw Syria as the one giving Hizbullah orders on how to operate."
In March of ...   more »

At a conference entitled "Jerusalem First," held in Ramallah on Sunday, the chairman of the United Arab List-Ta'al, Knesset Member Ibrahim Sarsur, called on all Arabs and Muslims to focus their energies on the future of Jerusalem. "If we act in concert, we can become a torrent on the road to liberation," he declared.  
Demographics 
In his comments, Sarsur emphasized the religious importance of Jerusalem for Muslims and said that Israeli plans for the Al-Aqsa Mosque, and all around the city, must be resisted. "Just as the Muslims liberated Jerusalem from the Crusaders, so we must believe that today, too, the liberation of Jerusalem is not an impossible mission," he said, adding that "security, peace and stability will be achieved only when the city is liberated."  
Sarsur emphasized that "Muslims around the world need to concentrate their energies on Jerusalem, not on Iraq or Kashmir or any other place, because Jerusalem is the central and most dangerous issue and thus must form the banner and the framework for the struggle of Muslims and Arabs around the world."  
Hadash Party Chairman MK Mohammed Barakeh, another conference participant, sharply attacked Israeli policy in the capital, claiming that it sought ...   more »

Almost two-thirds of people celebrating St Patrick's Day have no idea who the priest was, a survey claims.
Guinness sales rise dramatically every year on 17 March as people across the world mark the event.
But its true meaning has been forgotten - or never learnt - by many, according to the Manchester Irish Festival.
Organisers quizzed 2,000 people taking part in its festival parade but only 40% knew of the Christian missionary, who is the patron saint of Ireland.
Massive event
Manchester Irish Festival treasurer Patrick Marmion said: "People these days tend to celebrate St Patrick's Day with a massive party.
"The results found that the majority of Irish revellers believed St Patrick's Day meant wearing the Shamrock, sampling the Guinness and modelling the seasons must-have novelty hat.
"It has turned into an event where people go out and catch up with friends for a few drinks.
"In Ireland itself, the majority of people would take the opportunity to go to Mass - but also find time to have a few Guinness."
Teenage slave
Folklore tells how the priest, who was eventually elevated to the post of bishop, drove snakes out of Ireland.
The story is thought to symbolise ...   more »

Students at Philadelphia's sixty high schools issued contactless campus ID cards
Access, attendance tracking, lunch programs drive the implementation provided by Scholarchip
Andy Williams, Contributing Editor
Colleges have been using campus card ID systems for years. But with increasing security concerns, similar products are moving into public schools. One example: Philadelphia, Penn.’s school system where high school students at 60 schools have been provided a contactless ID card needed to gain admission to school property, track attendance, and, in some cases, buy lunch in the cafeteria.
"We have 56,000 high school students and we wanted a better handle on (them)," said Patricia DiLella, senior project manager for Philadelphia School District’s Office of Information Technology. "Before, everyone was assumed present until marked absent. We needed something to track students. With this new system, everyone is assumed absent until they tap (their card) and have physically been seen by school personnel."
Via a request for proposal process, the district selected ScholarChip Card LLC, a seven-year-old organization whose origins date to higher education and has since incorporated K-12 schools in its lineup. While ScholarChip had been conducting a pilot program in two of Philadelphia’s middle schools, it landed the five-year contract because it ...   more »

By Solly Ganor
FrontPageMagazine.com |
Five years ago, I had a conversation with a young Palestinian student who in short precise terms explained how Islam will defeat the West. The conversation opened my eyes to a much larger picture in which Israel plays only a minor role in the Islamic game of conquest. Since then I tried to speak to some Arabs who come to pray at the Mosque, but they were not as outspoken as the student.
Last week, I had another conversation with an Israeli Arab construction boss by the unlikely name of Francis who was in charge of building a villa near our house in Herzelia. He told me that his family was Christian, and his name was given to him in honor of the Franciscan monks. Our conversation was as interesting as the first conversation I had with the Arab student five years ago and I would like to share it with you. Francis frequently parked his car near our house and we would exchange polite greetings.
About a week ago, the water was shut off for repairs in the house he was building, and Francis asked me if I could give him some hot water ...   more »

A school in England attempting to be politically correct toward Muslims ended up offending them even more when it changed the name of its rendition of "The Three Little Pigs."
The Honley Church of England Junior School in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, decided that since pigs are offensive to Muslims, it should rework the classic tale and call it "The Three Little Puppies" instead, according to the Daily Mail of London.
Islamic leaders, however, condemned the move as misguided and said decisions like this were turning Muslims into "misfits" in society.
About 250 children, ages 7 to 11, were to perform "The Three Little Pigs" at Huddersfield Town Hall in June. But at a recent committee meeting, the organizers of the Kirklees Primary Music Festival decided to change the script to be "sensitive" to Muslims.
"We have to be sensitive if we want to be multi-cultural. It was felt it would be more responsible not to use the three little pigs," said committee member Gill Goodswen, head teacher of Stile Common Junior School, according to the London paper.
"We feared that some Muslim children wouldn't sing along to the words about pigs."
Goodswen said there was no complaint that prompted the ...   more »

Source: Ha'aretz
Mar 16, 2007
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad heaped scorn on the international community on Thursday over its feeble attempts to halt Iran's nuclear program.
The five permanent members of the UN Security Council plus Germany finally agreed on Thursday on a package of additional sanctions to impose on the Islamic Republic in light of its continued defiance.
Those measures will reportedly include a ban on Iranian military exports and freezing the assets of additional individuals and companies tied to Iran's nuclear program.
Speaking to his own state-run media, Ahmadinejad scoffed at the agreement and the Security Council resolution it will form the basis of, noting that Iran is already capable of maintaining its nuclear cycle without outside assistance.
What are you seeking to prevent [Iran] from achieving? Today, the Iranian nation fully possesses the nuclear fuel cycle. If all of you gather and also invite your ancestors from hell, you will not be able to stop the Iranian nation.
Israeli leaders have sharply criticized the international community for failing to take strong enough measures to stop Iran before it was too late.
Many now expect that Iran will obtain nuclear weapons barring military intervention by either Israel or ...   more »