Guest guest Posted December 2, 2003 Report Share Posted December 2, 2003 --- Jon Nader <jnader wrote: > Sat, 29 Nov 2003 11:36:04 +0300 (MSK) > Jon Nader <jnader > vrinparker > Hush, hush about Israel's bomb > > > Hush, hush about Israel's bomb > > By Jonathan Cook > Al-Ahram Weekly, 27 November - 3 December 2003 > http://weekly.ahram.org.eg/2003/666/re2.htm > > At midday on Friday, 24 October, Issam Makhoul, an > Arab > member of > the Israeli parliament, and his wife Suad got into > their two cars > outside their home in the centre of Haifa. Issam > Makhoul reversed > his Knesset-supplied Ford out of the driveway as his > wife started > the engine of the family Honda to collect their twin > children from > school. > > Seconds later an explosion flooded Suad Makhoul's > car > with flames. > She leapt from the vehicle moments before the fire > could engulf her. > > Today, Makhoul's house is under a 24-hour guard and > he > is escorted > everywhere in public by an army-trained bodyguard -- > of > the kind > usually accompanying senior government ministers and > defence > officials. > > The Shin Bet security services, who have told > Makhoul > that the > explosion was caused by a small bomb placed under > the > car, have > refused to comment further. There has been almost no > coverage in > either the Israeli or foreign media, and a Haifa > court > has issued a > gag order on information related to the case. > > Makhoul has possibly the lowest profile of the 10 > Arab > members of > the Knesset, most of whom appear readier than > Makhoul > to make > headlines in the Hebrew media by being drawn into > verbal, and > occasionally physical, combat with right- wing MPs > in > the chamber. > > Makhoul belongs to Jubha, the "quietest" of the Arab > factions. The > party is contained within the joint Arab and Jewish > Communist bloc > known as the Democratic Front for Peace and > Equality, > which uniquely > puts co-existence between the two main communities > at > the heart of > its political platform. > > Other Arab MPs belong to Azmi Bishara's secular > nationalist Tajamu > Party and the Islamic Movement, whose spiritual > leader > is Sheikh > Raed Salah. > > These two have been far more outspoken and as a > consequence are the > subject of public witch- hunts. Both are now > embroiled > in criminal > trials initiated by Attorney-General Elyakim > Rubinstein, apparently > at the behest of Prime Minister Ariel Sharon. > > So what thrust the white-haired, mild- mannered > Makhoul > into a > situation in which he was specially targeted for > assassination? > > According to Israeli Army Radio, Knesset security > officials are > working on the assumption that criminal elements > within > the Arab > minority were responsible for the attack. That seems > far less > probable than that the would-be assassins selected > Makhoul because > he has been an almost solitary critic of Israel's > most > sensitive -- > if widely known -- secret: that it has stockpiles of > weapons of mass destruction (WMDs), including > nuclear arms. > > For decades Israel has refused to confirm the now > well-documented > fact that it has a significant arsenal of nuclear > warheads -- the > only country in the Middle East known to have > successfully developed > such a programme. Estimates suggest it has as many > as > 300 warheads, > some of which, if the latest reports are to be > believed, have been > fitted to cruise missiles aboard Dolphin submarines, > putting every > Arab state within range of an Israeli strike. > > With the connivance of the West -- in particular the > US, Britain, > France, Germany and South Africa -- Israel has been > allowed to do > all this unchecked at its nuclear weapons factory at > Dimona in the > Negev, and without signing the Non-Proliferation > Treaty. Today it is > believed to have nuclear weapons bases at Haifa, > Kfar > Zechariah, and > Eilaboun and Yodfat in the Galilee. > > Israel also has an advanced biological weapons > programme based at > Nes Tsiona, south of Tel Aviv, where it is reported > to > have been > working on new toxins, including a nerve agent that > can > attack genes > found only in Arabs. > > Makhoul gained notoriety in February 2000 for trying > to > cut through > Israel's policy of "nuclear ambiguity" -- its > refusal > publicly to > discuss its possession of warheads -- by raising the > issue of the > country's atomic programme in the Knesset, the first > time such a > debate had ever been staged. His speech provoked an > outpouring of > vitriol from Jewish MPs, who accused him of being a > traitor and > tried to have him ejected from the chamber. > > During the stormy debate, Makhoul appealed for the > release of > Mordechai Vanunu, the scientist turned whistleblower > who in 1986 > exposed Israel's secret weapons programme at Dimona. > Vanunu was > later abducted by Mossad agents and has been in > prison, > much of the > time in solitary confinement, ever since. > > Makhoul told the other MPs: "Vanunu is not the > problem. > The problem > is the Israeli government's policy. A policy that's > turned a small > territory into a poisonous nuclear waste bin ... > which > could make us > all disappear in a nuclear cloud." > > Most right-wing MPs were not in the chamber to > protest: > they had > stormed out before Makhoul got up to speak. Instead > left-wing MPs > shouted abuse, including Ophir Pines of Labour who > called out: "You > are committing a crime against Israeli Arabs today." > > Makhoul outraged the Israeli government and the > general > public > again, in June this year, by appearing in the BBC > documentary > "Israel's Secret Weapon", which examined in detail > Israel's record > of acquiring WMDs and its concerted effort to > intimidate those who > try to speak out. > > In one scene a series of officials refuse to give an > interview to > the BBC reporter over the phone, several saying that > they do not > want to suffer Vanunu's fate. Makhoul, on the other > hand, is shown > castigating Israel for dragging the region into a > nuclear arms race. > > The broadcast so angered Israel that it cut all > official ties with > the BBC, including its reporters; a ban that was > only > reversed this > week after the BBC -- in what was widely seen as an > attempt to > ingratiate itself with the Sharon government -- > agreed > to set up a > Mideast news ombudsman to ensure the "impartiality" > of > its reports. > > Few Israeli officials are prepared to link the bomb > attack with the > MP's campaign against the country's nuclear arsenal. > The producers > of the BBC programme e-mailed Makhoul after the > explosion to say > they hoped it was not the result of the broadcast. > > However, Roman Bronfman, a Haifa member of the > Knesset > from the > Meretz Party who has close contacts with Israel's > large > Russian > community, says he has heard that a group of extreme > right-wing > Russian students at the Technion technical college > in > Haifa planted > the device. Four groups at the college are believed > to > have openly > opposed Makhoul's nuclear views. Bronfman has handed > a > list of > suspects to the police, though so far no action has > been taken. > > Sources close to Makhoul, however, believe that the > assassination > plot cannot be lightly dismissed as the work of > fanatics. The police > have told the MP that the culprits must have carried > out detailed > research of his movements before deciding where and > when to plant > the bomb. > > But the size of the bomb, weighing less than one > kilogramme, > suggests it was meant less to kill and more to send > a > message -- not > the usual tactics of a Jewish terror cell. > > The attack also follows a campaign of widespread > incitement against > Makhoul, which the authorities, including the > attorney-general, have > done nothing to curb. > > Typical was an interview of Makhoul on a Tel Aviv > radio > talk show > with a former right-wing Knesset member, Shmuel > Platto > Sharon, two > weeks after the assassination attempt and close to > the > anniversary > of Yitzhak Rabin's assassination by right-wing > extremists. > > Although ostensibly there to talk about Israel's > nuclear policies, > Makhoul is interrupted by Sharon who barks at him > with > the question, > "Why do you hate us?", and the statement, "You are > dangerous". Later > Sharon again interrupts to say, "You have no > business > being here [in > Israel] -- you should go to Palestine." He then > adds: > "I know your > game. You eat Jews. People like you shouldn't stay > in > this country." > > Friends of Makhoul fear that the climate of hatred > against him is > receiving official sanction. Some of the continuing > official > hostility towards Makhoul may derive from his > determination to > create an anti-nuclear campaign inside Israel. He > observes: "Israel > is the only nuclear state in the world that hasn't > developed a 'ban > the bomb' movement, either within the peace camp or > the > green > movement. Here uniquely, it seems, the Israeli bomb > is > seen as a > peaceful bomb. Those who call themselves peace > activists are really > apologists for Israel's continuing nuclear policy." > > -- > ______________________ India Mobile: Download the latest polyphonic ringtones. Go to http://in.mobile. 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