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HONEST REPORTING
British publisher apologizes for wiping Israel off map
January 4, 2013
(JTA) -- A British publishing firm reportedly apologized for replacing Israel with an entity called “Occupied Palestine” in a textbook.
According to The Commentator, a British website and blogging platform, the apology came in an unsigned email from the publisher, Garnet Education.

“Unfortunately the map was mislabelled ‘Occupied Palestine,’ " the email said. "This was a serious editorial error and was subsequently corrected. The book in question has not been in print for several years.”

The email further said, “Please accept our sincere apologies for any offence caused but rest assured that this was a genuine mistake and in no way reflects any Garnet Education policy.”

The textbook, “Skills in English Writing -- Level 1,” contains a map of the Middle East, labeling and identifying the various countries as part of an exercise. The map, however, makes no mention of Israel, replacing it with the words "Occupied Palestine."

An article about the book, which is intended for teaching English as a second language, appeared on the website of Israel Today, an Israeli daily.

According to The Commentator, the book is used by teachers across the United Kingdom and beyond.
http://www.jta.org/news/article/2013/01/04/3116041/british-publisher-apologizes-for-wiping-israel-off-map

HONEST REPORTING


Israeli Children’s Trauma Ignored by Washington Post
by Simon Plosker
The Washington Post has published a story examining the trauma suffered by Gazan children as a result of conflict. The scene is set with a vivid and emotive opening:

Fatima still dreams about Ahmed. Sometimes they’re playing with toys as they used to do. But in other dreams, she’s looking over the edge of the balcony at her brother’s smashed and bloodied body, his pink brain spilling from his skull, her father screaming through his tears.

Ahmed was 7 when he was killed by an Israeli airstrike during the 2008 Israeli invasion of Gaza. Fatima was 8 at the time — but that was “old enough to remember,” said her father, Osama Mohamed Qurtan.

And herein lies the fundamental problem with the story – the description of an Israeli “invasion” paints a picture of Gazan children suffering as a result of Israeli malevolence. Indeed, later in the article is the following:

Gaza was attacked, they say, for the same reason Israel struck in 2008 — to kill Palestinians and seize more Palestinian land. (Israel says its warplanes carry out precision strikes on carefully identified terrorist targets.)

A short sentence in parentheses is all that Israel’s narrative warrants according to the Washington Post. This article could not be any more one-sided. Nowhere is there any reference to the thousands of rockets fired at Israeli targets from Gaza. While the writer refers to Gaza experiencing two wars in four years, what about Sderot and the surrounding areas of southern Israel that have experienced barely a day of quiet during the past decade? Israeli children have been brought up experiencing almost daily alerts that give them some 15 seconds to take cover or run for a bomb shelter.
More http://honestreporting.com/israeli-childrens-trauma-ignored-by-washington-post/

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Hamas: 25 Facts For 25 Years
Much of the media covered the weekend’s events in Gaza, where Hamas leader Khaled Meshal commemorated his terror organization’s 25th anniversary.

What is Hamas really celebrating? Here are 25 facts to remind you:

1. Hamas takes its name from an acronym that means “Islamic Resistance Movement” in Arabic.

2. Hamas refuses to recognize the State of Israel’s right to exist as an independent, sovereign nation, and is totally opposed to any agreement or arrangement that would recognize its right to exist. At the beginning of its charter there is a quotation attributed to Hassan Al-Bana, the Muslim Brotherhood’s founder, that “Israel will arise and continue to exist until Islam wipes it out, as it wiped out what went before.”

3. Hamas is committed to jihad. Its charter stresses the importance of jihad (holy war) as the main means for the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) to achieve its goals: An uncompromising jihad must be waged against Israel. Jihad is the personal duty of every Muslim.
4. Hamas is an anti-Semitic organization. According to its charter, the Jewish people have only negative traits and are presented as planning to take over the world. The charter uses myths taken from classical European and Islamic-based anti-Semitism.
READ MORE
http://honestreporting.com/hamas-25-facts-for-25-years/
Watch 17 seconds video Hamas dragging off using children as human shields. Hamas using children as human shield
https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=J08GqXMr3YE
Human Shields~ Hamas MP Fathi Hamad- We desire death like you desire life. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vH0tEceCe9Y

HONEST REPORTING Defending Israel from Media Bias

Irish Newspaper: How to Boycott Israel
The Irish Times doesn't just report on boycott calls, it helps promote them. The Irish Congress of Trade Unions has issued a call to ban imports from what it calls “illegal Israeli settlements”. The Irish Times reports on the story, stating that the head of the ICTU is calling for an “urgent meeting” with the Irish Minister for Foreign Affairs “to seek an immediate and effective intervention by the Irish Government in light of the recent conflict in the Gaza Strip.”
Read more...
http://honestreporting.com/irish-newspaper-how-to-boycott-israel/

Follow HonestReporting's Latest Mission to Israel
Twenty people – mostly members of Sydney's Jewish community, plus a number of West Australians and Americans – are currently participating in the inaugural NSW Jewish Board of Deputies-HonestReporting Advocacy Mission in Israel. Read more...
http://honestreporting.com/australian-%E2%80%93-honestreporting-advocacy-mission-%E2%80%93-day-6/


Despite the Hype, E1 Doesn't Cut West Bank in Two
Settlement activity's a divisive issue, even among Israelis. But let's get one thing clear. Developing E1 doesn't divide the West Bank in two. Read more...
http://honestreporting.com/despite-the-hype-e1-doesnt-cut-west-bank-in-two/
HR Features
Israel is in the midst of a battle for public opinion – waged primarily via the media. To ensure Israel is represented fairly and accurately HonestReporting monitors the media, exposes cases of bias, promotes balance, and effects change through education and action. We also provide educational tools and resorurces to anyone wishing to advocate for Israel. HonestReporting is based in Jerusalem and regularly offers branded in-depth missions/travel "Inside Israel".
Israel Daily News Stream
http://honestreporting.com/category/israeldailynewsstream/
HR Video Channel
https://www.youtube.com/user/HonestReportingVideo
HR Slideshows
http://www.slideshare.net/HonestReporting
Press Box
HonestReporting’s team members don’t just critique the media – they also contribute on TV, radio and print to the debate on media bias. Below is a selection of HonestReporting press appearances from around the globe:
http://honestreporting.com/press-box/
In other news
How Will Big Media Refer to the Palestinian “State”?
NY Times Bureau Chief Goes Back to Social Media 101
More Media Fails: Hall of Shame Welcomes Five New Members

New York Times Redefines the Word Journalist
You’d think veteran newsman David Carr would know the difference between a journalist and a propagandist as he accuses the IDF of deliberately targeting journalists during the recent Gaza operation.
ReadMore> http://honestreporting.com/new-york-times-redefines-the-word-journalist/


Washington Post: “Bee Stings on the Israeli Bear’s Behind”
According to the Washington Post's ombudsman, the "overwhelming majority of rockets fired from Gaza are like bee stings on the Israeli bear’s behind."
ReadMore>
http://honestreporting.com/washington-post-bee-stings-on-the-israeli-bears-behind/

GOT A HOT TIP? LET US KNOW
Many of the worst instances of media bias during Operation Pillar of Defense were exposed online by individuals like you. HR subscribers are a virtual army of media monitors. Got a hot tip? Send it to us through our Red Alert page.
Send us your HOT TIP
H. R. RED ALERT http://honestreporting.com/redalert/

More Media Fails: Hall of Shame Welcomes Five New Members
November 22, 2012 15:24
by Alex Margolin
As Operation Pillar of Defense appears to reach its conclusion, we round up our Hall of Shame with a further five new entries.
http://honestreporting.com/more-media-fails-hall-of-shame-welcomes-five-new-members/
Also Here> http://honestreporting.com/top-5-media-fails-the-media-war-hall-of-shame/

HONEST REPORTING
Ha'aretz Creates Non-Existent Apartheid State
Ha'aretz's radical left-wing commentator, Gideon Levy, deliberately feeds the international media a skewed and biased reading of a poll in order to promote his nasty politicized agenda.
http://honestreporting.com/haaretz-creates-non-existent-apartheid-state/
Ha'aretz Illustrates Its Own Bias
What happened when Ha'aretz selected a photo to illustrate a story involving Jews, money and theft?
The result was shocking.
http://honestreporting.com/haaretz-illustrates-its-own-bias/

BBC Airbrushes Atzmon’s Anti-Semitism
Why did the BBC give a platform to an anti-Semite? On 14 October, the BBC World Service, in a discussion on the links between music and politics, interviewed Gilad Atzmon, a studio guest described as an

acclaimed and controversial jazz saxophonist… a London-based Israeli jazz man… whose political criticism of Zionism and the Israeli state has made him many enemies.

But as is so often the case with the BBC, a piece of vital context has been omitted – Gilad Atzmon is a dye-in-the-wool anti-Semite.

And, in this case, the BBC has no excuse whatsoever for confusing criticism of Zionism or Israel with actual Jew-hatred. For Gilad Atzmon’s Holocaust denial and support for anti-Semitic conspiracy theories have been well-documented. Read more
http://honestreporting.com/bbc-airbrushes-atzmons-anti-semitism/

HONEST REPORTING
Defending Israel from media bias


HR Turns Triple Play Over Israel's Capital
The UK's Press Complaints Commission finally rules in HR's favor that Tel Aviv is not Israel's capital.
HR also forces corrections on the same point from the Daily Mail and Daily Telegraph as our zero tolerance policy pays dividends.
Read more and join the conversation
http://honestreporting.com/hr-turns-triple-play-over-israels-capital/

BBC "Balancing" Refugee Claims
Guest contributor Lyn Julius notes that the BBC has finally covered the issue of Jewish refugees.
But why does a radio report seek to 'balance' the claims of Jewish refugees with those of Palestinians without question?
Read more and join the conversation
http://honestreporting.com/bbc-balancing-refugee-claims/

HonestReporting Selected for US Combined Federal Campaign
We are pleased to announce that HR has been selected for the 2012-2013 Campaign year in the United States Combined Federal Campaign (CFC).
Find out more and help HonestReporting
http://honestreporting.com/support-us/honestreporting-and-the-us-combined-federal-campaign/
Click here to see HonestReporting's latest appearances in the media
http://honestreporting.com/press-box/

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IDF Soldier's Death Vanishes in UK Media Coverage
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HONEST REPORTING
New York Times Embroiled in Anti-Semitism Spat
Referring to a senior Romney adviser as a "puppet master", the New York Times' Maureen Dowd has been accused of resorting to anti-Semitic tropes.
http://honestreporting.com/new-york-times-embroiled-in-anti-semitism-spat/

Israeli Cruise Review Sinks in Ocean of Garbage
A travel review in The Times of London inaccurately portrays Israel as a virtual war zone while criticizing Israeli security procedures.
Did the reviewer really visit the same country as millions of other happy tourists?
Read more and join the conversation >>
http://honestreporting.com/israeli-cruise-review-sinks-in-ocean-of-garbage/

Rockets Fall But Where's the Coverage?

“If a tree falls in a forest and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound?”
This philosophical question could well be applied to the media’s treatment, or lack of, concerning the latest barrage of rockets to be launched from Gaza at Israeli population centers.
Over the weekend, Grad rockets from Gaza explode in southern Israel, causing injuries and extensive damage and the cancellation of schools in Beersheba and Ashdod.
But none of the international media bothered to report it.
Read more
http://honestreporting.com/rockets-fall-but-wheres-the-coverage/

Make Up Your Mind, New York Times!
Do Gazans live in abject poverty and a prison-like existence caused by severe Israeli restrictions?
Or has there been an easing of the blockade and a building boom?
The New York Times can't seem to make up its mind.
Read more
http://honestreporting.com/make-up-your-mind-new-york-times/

Welcome to Joe's Israel!
HonestReporting has partnered with Joe's Israel, an exciting brand new internet campaign giving young people a platform for building and discussing their connection with Israel.
Find out more about Joe's Israel >
http://honestreporting.com/welcome-to-joes-israel/

HonestReporting Selected for US Combined Federal Campaign

We are pleased to announce that HR has been selected for the 2012-2013 Campaign year in the United States Combined Federal Campaign (CFC).
Find out more and help HonestReporting >>
http://honestreporting.com/support-us/honestreporting-and-the-us-combined-federal-campaign/

HONEST REPORTING
Rachel Corrie: Media Issue Their Own Verdicts
An Israeli judge rules that the 2003 death of Rachel Corrie, who confronted an Israeli bulldozer in Gaza, was an "unfortunate accident" and not the fault of the IDF.
How have some of the media covered the verdict?
http://honestreporting.com/rachel-corrie-media-issue-their-own-verdicts/

VIDEO: How an Anti-Semitic Picture Made the News
Join HR's Yarden Frankl as he looks at how a disgusting anti-Semitic caricature was passed off as news by the South African Broadcasting Corporation.

Find out how you can take action.
Watch the video and join the conversation >>
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EVvVvhw_Ne8&feature=player_embedded

HonestReporting Selected for US Combined Federal Campaign
We are pleased to announce that HR has been selected for the 2012-2013 Campaign year in the United States Combined Federal Campaign (CFC).
Find out more and help HonestReporting >>
http://honestreporting.com/honestreporting-selected-for-us-combined-federal-campaign/

UPDATE – Fight Over BBC Olympic Coverage Intensifies
The BBC’s controversial decision to omit Israel’s capital of Jerusalem from the information on countries participating in the London Olympics has drawn a strong response from the Israeli government. READ MORE and please see 2ndpost to like the page.
http://honestreporting.com/update-fight-over-bbc-olympic-coverage-intensifies/
To recap, the BBC initially left out any reference to an Israeli capital while simultaneously listing “East Jerusalem” as the capital of “Palestine.” The BBC then amended the listings in response to public outrage and a letter from Mark Regev, a spokesman for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

For detailed information on the BBC’s Olympic coverage, see HR’s last communique, BBC Olympic Coverage Declares East Jerusalem as Palestinian Capital.

The new text replaced the word capital with “Seat of Government” in Jerusalem, while adding that most foreign embassies “are in Tel Aviv.” It made a parallel change to the listing for “Palestine”, listing “East Jerusalem” as the “Intended seat of government.”

For HonestReporting and all those demanding the BBC print the truth about Israel, the change was not good enough. Seat of government is not the same as capital, and Mark Regev sent a second letter demanding that the BBC end the discrimination against Israel. “Unlike all other countries listed,” he wrote, “in Israel’s case, our capital Jerusalem is not classified by the BBC as such but rather as a “Seat of Government.”"

If your on FACEBOOK Please like their page. Jerusalem is the Capital of Israel.
Government officials have sent several sharply-worded letters to the BBC demanding that it list Israel’s capital as it does for virtually every other country. It also launched a popular campaign on Facebook called Jerusalem is the Capital of Israel, inviting the public to join the effort. More than 16,000 already have.
https://www.facebook.com/JerusalemCapitalofIsrael

HONEST REPORTING
VIDEO: CNN Runs on Empty

Join HR's Yarden Frankl as he discusses CNN's feature on a Palestinian Olympic runner and the obstacles she faces due to "Israel's occupation" and hardships in the West Bank.
Except this athlete doesn't even train on Palestinian territory preferring to run in other Mideast countries. So why then the stock footage of riots and violence in the West Bank?
Watch the video and join the conversation >>
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4qivmRyV5Yg&feature=player_embedded

Norwegian Media: Distorting the News
Despite the perception that Norway has the greatest press freedom in the world, the media exercises self-censorship in order to promote an anti-Israel slant sometimes tainted with anti-Semitism.
Read more and join the conversation >>
http://honestreporting.com/norwegian-media-distorting-the-news/

HR Comment: Righting a Capital Offense

Following The Guardian's correction stating that it was wrong to call Tel Aviv Israel's capital, HR's Managing Editor publishes an opinion piece in the Jerusalem Post.
What are the wider implications of this legal action and why was HonestReporting the only organization to take on The Guardian and the Press Complaints Commission?
Read more and join the conversation http://honestreporting.com/hr-comment-righting-a-capital-offense/

HR Launches First Ever Joint Mission With Sydney Community
HonestReporting is proud to announce it is teaming up with Australia's New South Wales Jewish Board of Deputies for a first-of-its-kind Mission to Israel.
Read more and find out more about our Australian Mission >>
http://relay.netatlantic.com/t/31887133/69333467/34067/34/

Honest Reporting
[url=http://honestreporting.com/bob-costas-to-honor-slain-israeli-athletes]http://honestreporting.com/bob-costas-to-honor-slain-israeli-athletes/[/url]
Bob Costas to Honor Slain Israeli Athletes
July 19, 2012 14:00
by Alex Margolin

Former US President George W. Bush speaks with Bob Costas of NBC Sports during an interview while attending the 2008 Summer Olympic Games in Beijing.
The International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) immoral decision to reject calls for a moment of silence for Israeli’s athletes murdered at the 1972 Munich games will not go unnoticed.

Sportcaster Bob Costas told the Hollywood Reporter this week that he had his own plans for a tribute to the athletes as part of his duties covering the Olympics for NBC Sports.

At the July 27 Opening Ceremony from London, Costas plans to call out the IOC for denying Israel’s request for a moment of silence acknowledging the massacre of 11 Israeli athletes and coaches at the 1972 Games. On the 40th anniversary of Munich, it’s a decision he finds “baffling.” When the Israeli delegation enters the 80,000-seat Olympic Stadium, Costas will stage his own protest: “I intend to note that the IOC denied the request,” he says, modulating his voice as if he were on the air. “Many people find that denial more than puzzling but insensitive. Here’s a minute of silence right now.”
An IOC-backed moment of remembrance is still the most appropriate way to mark the anniversary of the terrorist attack on Israel’s athletes. After all, it’s part of the Olympic history as much as any of the athletic events of that year. But if the IOC is turning a blind eye to its own legacy, having Bob Costas step in and rectify the issue in front of a massive audience of US Olympic watchers may well be the next best thing.

Who knows, maybe other members of the media will follow suit.

In 2004, the BBC conducted a thorough internal review of its coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The contents of the Balen Report, authored by Malcolm Balen were never released to the public.

That the BBC spent some £250,000 successfully fending off legal attempts to get the report published led many to conclude that the report’s findings probably confirmed the view that the BBC’s coverage was at best, seriously flawed and more likely, biased against Israel.

While the Balen Report has been locked in a dark vault in BBC HQ, this last week saw the very public release of an internal BBC review into its coverage of the so-called “Arab Spring”, commissioned by the BBC Trust.

This report’s author, Edward Mortimer, a former United Nations communications director, was broadly positive about the BBC’s reporting. He did, however, identify a number of serious failings.

If Mortimer’s findings are a good indication of how the BBC reports on the Middle East in general, what would happen if we were to speculatively try to place these findings into the context of BBC reporting on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict? Might we come up with a version of “Balen-lite”? Allow me to try.

“Over-excitement”

There was acknowledgment from BBC Head of News Helen Boaden that some of the coverage, particularly from Libya where BBC journalists were “embedded” with rebel forces, was sometimes infected with excitement leading to a failure to explore both sides of the story. This was particularly evident with the delay in reporting human rights abuses by the Libyan rebels.

The BBC seemingly divided Arab rebels versus dictatorial regimes into a simple fight against good and evil. This would leave little room for acknowledging, for example, the role of the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt or the presence of Global Jihad extremists amongst the Libyan rebels.

To most observers, the demise of Colonel Gaddafi’s regime was not something to be mourned. But does this mean that BBC journalists found themselves eliciting sympathy for one side over the other, possibly in breach of BBC impartiality guidelines?

Read the rest of this op-ed on Page 2
Here http://honestreporting.com/op-ed-bbc-exposes-its-mideast-bias/

HONEST REPORTING
The BBC In Its Own Words: "We Made a Mistake"
The BBC issues a rare acknowledgment of fault over coverage of the 2011 Itamar murders as its Director-General is questioned in a UK parliamentary hearing.
In March 2011, the BBC’s coverage or, rather, lack of coverage of the brutal murders of the Fogel family generated outrage as well as shock and grief that an Israeli family, including a three-month old baby girl, could have been butchered in such an appalling way.
The BBC’s indifference to the murders also grabbed the attention of British politician Louise Bagshawe, now Louise Mensch who slammed the BBC in an opinion piece.
READ MORE> http://honestreporting.com/the-bbc-in-its-own-words-we-made-a-mistake/
VIDEO: Reuters: It All Started When Israel Fired Back
A Reuters headline claims that Israel broke the ceasefire while in reality, Israel was responding to rocket fire.
Join HR's Yarden Frankl in this video commentary and take action.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2H8ovPATveI&feature=player_embedded

The BBC In Its Own Words: “We Made a Mistake”

June 26, 2012 15:47 by Simon Plosker

In March 2011, the BBC’s coverage or, rather, lack of coverage of the brutal murders of the Fogel family generated outrage as well as shock and grief that an Israeli family, including a three-month old baby girl, could have been butchered in such an appalling way.

The BBC’s indifference to the murders also grabbed the attention of British politician Louise Bagshawe, now Louise Mensch who slammed the BBC in an opinion piece. Mensch eventually elicited a less than satisfactory response from the BBC’s Head of News blaming “a remarkably busy weekend” of news for the low priority given to the Itamar murders.

To her credit, Mensch has continued to use her position to hold the BBC to account by questioning the BBC’s outgoing Director-General Mark Thompson at a parliamentary hearing of the Culture, Media and Sport Select Committee. Thompson was forced to admit “very straightforwardly, we got it wrong.” The Jewish Chronicle reports on Louise Mensch’s questioning of Thompson:

“I was overwhelmed by response from the Jewish community both here and abroad. There was a feeling the BBC just didn’t care and that, if a settler had entered the home of a Palestinian family, slit the throat of their children, that the BBC would have covered that.”

Mrs Mensch had subsequently received an apology from BBC News’s Helen Boaden but wanted Mr Thompson’s reassurance about the BBC’s “even-handedness” on the Middle East conflict.

Mr Thompson said the story had come during a “very busy news period” including the fighting in Libya and the tsunami in Japan.

“News editors were under a lot of pressure,” he said. “Having said that, it was certainly an atrocity which should have been covered across our news bulletins that day.”

But he added: “I don’t believe that should be taken as systemic bias. We try very, very hard… to reflect suffering on both sides of that conflict. When there has been a humanitarian incident in Gaza, we try to show the effects of rockets in Sderot.” . . .

“But I do want to say, to all our audience including our Jewish and Israeli audiences here and around the world, we do want to make sure we are fair and impartial. We made a mistake in this instance.”

While this rare acknowledgment on the part of the BBC is welcome, Thompson’s denial of BBC bias is laughable. In those rare occasions where the BBC has mentioned the effects of Gaza rockets on Israeli civilians, they have more often than not been buried near the bottom of a story focused on Israeli air strikes on Gaza, promoting the “cycle of violence“.

Recent headlines such as Gaza: New Israeli air strikes leave several dead are illustrative of the systemic problem of the BBC’s reporting.

Is this Mark Thompson’s idea of fairness and impartiality?

In addition, what has not been picked up in news reports are some of Thompson’s other statements to the Select Committee. For example:

READ MORE http://honestreporting.com/the-bbc-in-its-own-words-we-made-a-mistake/

Will Iran Strike New York City On 9/11 Scale?
http://www.cbn.com
New York City: It's the center of the U.S. financial system and for many people, the capital of the world. That's why the Big Apple remains a top terror target.

From the 1993 World Trade Center bombing to 9/11, and more recently, the Times Square bomber, terrorists have repeatedly targeted Manhattan.

Now Iran, the world's largest state sponsor of terror, is reportedly taking aim.

A recent warning about the threat posed by Iran and its terror proxy, Hezbollah, came from lawmakers on Capitol Hill.

"We know Hezbollah operatives are here," Rep. Peter King, R-N.Y., told a House committee on homeland security in March.

"The question is whether these Hezbollah operatives have the capacity to carry out attacks on the U.S. homeland and how quickly they can become fully operational," he said.

King said hundreds of operatives are here and that some Iranian diplomats stationed at the United Nations are much more than they appear.

"Several of their comrades in the U.N. mission in New York were sent back to Iran after the NYPD caught them photographing the city's rail systems in the years since 9/11," he said.

According to one NYPD official, there have been at least five other instances of what he called "hostile reconnaissance" against New York City by Iranian agents.

"They see that attacking New York or threatening the facilities in New York will destabilize the financial markets and automatically harm the U.S. economy," former CIA double agent Reza Kahlili told CBN News.

Kahlili was once a member of Iran's Revolutionary Guards Corps. His book, A Time to Betray, lays out Iran's potential plots against America.

"Many cells are present here. And they have their eyes set on our power plants, water supply, food distribution, bridges, tunnels -- anything that could create fear and also disrupt the daily life of Americans," he warned.

One Iranian naval commander said recently that Iran's forces can move within three miles of New York City if they so choose.

Kahlili said an attack against Iran's nuclear facilities could be the trigger.

"They believe that an attack on Syria or Iran would be sufficient to trigger a response, which would be terrorist attacks on the world stage against U.S. and Israeli interests, an attack on Israel and attacks on U.S. soil," Kahlili said.

Iran shocked many analysts with last year's plot to attack foreign diplomats in Washington, D.C. A nuclear-armed Iranian regime would likely become even bolder.

"You can tell that Iran gets more aggressive the closer they get toward a nuclear weapon," Ryan Mauro, a national security analyst for RadicalIslam.org, told CBN News.

"Rather than international pressure making them restrain themselves, it's actually making them act more and more aggressively," he said.

Iran and Hezbollah already have an extensive network in Latin America, which they could use to strike at the United States. And according to Kahlili, Iranian agents also have a presence in some American mosques.
-------------------------------------------------------------
Israel Skeptical Of Iranian Nuke Deal With UN

http://news.yahoo.com
Israel's defense minister voiced skepticism on Tuesday over an agreement by Iran to open up its nuclear facilities to U.N. inspectors, saying the Iranians are trying to create a "deception of progress" to stave off international pressure.

The cool reception from Defense Minister Ehud Barak signaled that Israel will not ease up pressure on the international community to curb Iran's nuclear program. Israel has repeatedly hinted it is ready to use force if it concludes international diplomacy has failed to stop the Iranians.

Barak spoke shortly after the U.N.'s nuclear chief announced he had reached a preliminary deal to allow his inspectors to restart a long-stalled probe into suspicions that Iran is secretly developing nuclear arms. The announcement came a day before Iran and six world powers were to meet in Baghdad for another round of negotiations.

"It looks like the Iranians are trying to reach a technical agreement that will create a deception of progress in talks in order to reduce the pressure ahead of talks tomorrow in Baghdad and postpone harshening of sanctions," Barak said during a discussion at the Defense Ministry, according to a statement from his office.

"Israel believes that a clear bar should be set for Iran that won't leave room for any window or crack for Iran to proceed toward military nuclear capability," Barak said. "It's forbidden to make any concessions to Iran. World powers demands must be clear and unequivocal."

Barak held out the possibility that Iran be allowed to keep a "symbolic amount" of low-enriched uranium for medical or research purposes, but only if it is under "strict" international supervision.

Israel wants Iran to halt the enrichment of uranium — a key step toward building a nuclear bomb — and agree to ship most of its stockpile of enriched uranium out of the country and open its nuclear facilities to inspection.

Iran says its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes.

Israel, along with the West, suspects that Iran is developing a nuclear bomb. Israel considers a nuclear-armed Iran a mortal threat, citing Iranian calls for Israel's destruction, Iran's support for Arab militant groups and Iran's development of missiles capable of striking Israel.