Israel Line - Thursday, May 1, 2008

• Bush says disclosure of Syrian reactor was message to Iran
• Zahar: We have 200,000 suicide bombers
• Video shows how AMOS-3 communications satellite was sent into orbit
• OP-ED: No less dangerous than anti-Semitism
• Shirley Brener conquers Hollywood
• Green dad with Bagir's suit of recycled bottles
• Hebrew Phrase of the Week

Bush says disclosure of Syrian reactor was message to Iran/Ynet

US President George W. Bush announced that his government purposefully delayed the disclosure of information about the destruction of the Syrian nuclear facility by the IDF in September because "We were concerned that an early disclosure would increase the risk of a confrontation in the Middle East or retaliation in the Middle East." The US government also released photos and a video showing the nuclear facility and the buildings surrounding it, which CIA officials considered compelling evidence as to its nuclear objectives.




Zahar: We have 200,000 suicide bombers/JPost

Israel may have 200 nuclear warheads, but Hamas has 200,000 people who want to blow themselves up inside Israel, Mahmoud Zahar, a senior Hamas official in the Gaza Strip, said on Tuesday. "If Israel says no, it will pay a heavy price," he said. "We are a besieged people and we will have to use all our tools to defend ourselves against Israel." Zahar said he expected Egyptian Intelligence chief Omar Suleiman to brief Israeli leaders next week on Cairo's efforts to achieve a truce.



Video shows how AMOS-3 communications satellite was sent into orbit/Ha'aretz

The sophisticated AMOS-3 communications satellite was sent into orbit at 8 A.M. Monday from the Baikonur Cosmodrome launch site in Kazakhstan. The $170 million satellite is designed to offer increased capacity, expanded coverage and improved links between the Mideast and Europe and the eastern U.S. It is to remain in space 18 years.




OP-ED: No less dangerous than anti-Semitism/Ha'aretz

The European sin is not anti-Semitism but rather pacifism, especially when dealing with the Europeans' attitude toward force on the part of a Western country. But this is not a sin that is any less dangerous than anti-Semitism. It was precisely the Holocaust that proved how dangerous silent acceptance was, even if accompanied with the most lofty excuses of preventing war and bringing "peace in our time" in the face of the forces of evil threatening openly to gain control, ruin and destroy - such are also the forces of fundamentalist Islam of our day.



Shirley Brener conquers Hollywood/Ynet

Israeli actress Shirley Brener will star in an action film entitled "Streets of Blood", alongside Sharon Stone, Val Kilmer, Dylan McDermott, rapper 50 Cent and Brian Presley.






Green dad with Bagir's suit of recycled bottles/Israel21c

An Israeli company Bagir has devised a new way to help fathers everywhere go green, without Dad ever having to realize it. Bagir and Sears have joined forces and starting this Father's Day are selling the world's first suit made from recycled plastic bottles. The "EcoGIR" suit to be sold under the Covington private-label, will be available come June in Sears stores across the United States. Made from wool and recycled PET plastic bottles collected in Japan, Bagir's suits will also be the first in the world to carry a carbon footprint label.



Hebrew Phrase of the Week/LearnHebrew




Chaim Umavet Beyad Haloshon
Literally and idiomatically: Life and death are in the hands (power) of the tongue

This phrase is taken directly from the Bible (Proverbs 18:21). Do you remember the terrible chant, "Sticks and stones can break my bones but names can never hurt me"? "No," says Proverbs. "Names" can definitely be harmful. This phrase "Chaim Umavet Byad Haloshon" takes on new and important meanings these days as we come to recognize the direct connection between verbal and physical abuse. There is nothing new under the sun; it just takes us a while to recognize it.


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