NucNews July 23, 2006 -------- NUCLEAR -------- depleted uranium Chemical Weapons used against Lebanese Civliians by Wayne Madsen July 23, 2006 Global Research Wayne Madsen Report http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=viewArticle&code=20060723&articleId=2800 July 22/23, 2006 -- U.S. military intelligence sources have told WMR that the artillery shell shown below being used by an Israel Defense Force member in Lebanon, is a type of dual and multi-use weapon the neocons falsely accused Saddam Hussein of possessing. Although the canister artillery shell is marketed as an anti-land mine fuel-air bomb, its payload can also include the chemicals used in thermobaric bombs, white phosphorous weapons, and chemical weapons. Thermobaric bombs contain polymer-bonded explosives or solid fuel-air explosives in their payloads. Thermobarics use a fuse munition unit (FMU) such as that seen on the nose of the Israeli artillery shell. The shell penetrates buildings, underground shelters, or tunnels, creating such a blast pressure that all the oxygen is sucked out from the spaces and the lungs of anyone who happens to be in proximity. Israel's use of such "vacuum" weapons has been reported from across Lebanon. The artillery shell below, with its FMU penetrator, can also be used to deliver chemical weapons, the use of which is also being reported from southern Lebanon. In addition, it can deliver white phosphorous, a substance that literally melts through skin but leaves clothing relatively intact. In Fallujah and elsewhere in Iraq, U.S. forces have used white phosphorous on civilians, leaving grotesque corpses as a psychological warfare reminder to the civilian population to surrender or evacuate an area. The photo from Sidon of a burnt and badly disfigured young Lebanese girl is a telltale sign of white phosphorous use by the Israelis. Similar photos from Fallujah were shown to this editor by a top investigative reporter for Italy's RAI television network. U.S. military intelligence experts believe the ease at which the Israeli soldier is handling the artillery shell is an indication that the payload contains light-weight gas and not a fuel-air mixture or thermobaric bomb components. WMR continues to receive reports from Lebanon of depleted uranium shells being used by the Israelis. The New York Times today is reporting that the U.S. is stepping up its delivery of "precision-guided" munitions to Israel (see article below on Bush administration pre-planning for the Israeli invasions of Lebanon and Gaza). -------- india Parameters must be set for Indo-US nuke deal, says Left New Delhi, July 23, 2006 The Hindu http://www.hinduonnet.com/thehindu/holnus/002200607231022.htm Left parties on Saturday demanded that Parliament must set the parameters on the basis of which the Indo-US deal for civilian nuclear energy cooperation could be ratified by the two Houses, alleging that US Congress, Senate and the Representative Committee were arbitrarily seeking to change the provisions of the historic pact. Until the Constitution was amended to ensure that all international pacts were ratified by Parliament, a very crucial accord like the nuclear deal could not take effect, they pointed out at an over three-hour meeting of the UPA-Left Coordination Committee, presided over by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. Briefing reporters after the three-hour meeting, CPI(M) General Secretary, Prakash Karat, said the Left parties had also told the government that they would raise this issue in the Monsoon session of Parliament, beginning Monday. They also took objection to the fact that the treaty would have to be ratified every year by the US President. "The terms and conditions of the treaty are not in conformity with our nuclear policy," Karat said. However, the meeting could not take up the issue of a nine-page note submitted by the Left parties to the government on the two-year performance of UPA in office and the situation arising from spiralling prices. Karat said that if the Left parties had taken up the discussion on the nine-page note, the meeting would not have been able to discuss anything else. He said the Left parties would meet the government again after about two weeks to take up the note. The Left parties also asked the government to critically analyse the situation arising from the Israeli pounding of Lebanon. On the Pension Bill and the Banking Regulatory Amendment Act, the CPI(M) leader said both sides were understanding each other's respective viewpoints and still working on them. However, the Left parties insisted on the introduction of the Tribal Bill in the Monsoon session of Parliament. To a specific query if the UPA leadership and the Left parties were now understanding each other better, he smiled and said, "there is no problem of any sort." The meeting also took up The Parliament (Prevention of Disqualification) Amendment Bill, The Scheduled Tribes (Recognition of Forest Rights) Bill, The Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority Bill and The Banking Regulation (Amendment) Bill. The meeting was also attended by UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi, Defence Minister Pranab Mukherjee, Home Minister Shivraj Patil, Finance Minister P Chidambaram, Minister of State in the Prime Minister's Office Prithiviraj Chavan, Congress leader Ahmed Patel, CPI(M) General Secretary Prakash Karat, CPI General Secretary A B Bardhan, CPI Secretary D Raja, Forward Bloc General Secretary D Biswas and RSP Secretary Abani Roy. -------- missile defense Czechs Opposed to Joining Missile Shield July 23, 2006 Angus Reid Global Scan http://www.angus-reid.com/polls/index.cfm/fuseaction/viewItem/itemID/12633 Many adults in the Czech Republic believe their country should not take part in the ballistic missile defence system developed by the United States, according to a poll by Median published in Mlada fronta Dnes. 83 per cent of respondents oppose the construction of an anti-missile site in Czech territory. In December 2002, U.S. president George W. Bush announced plans for the development of initial defence capabilities, which include ground-based and sea-based missile interceptors, as well as sensors located in space. In 2004, the U.S. approached the governments of the Czech Republic, Hungary and Poland as possible partners in the missile defence system. So far, three Czech military bases—located in North Moravia, Central Bohemia and South Bohemia—have been mentioned as possible locations for the construction of an anti-missile site. Czech voters renewed the Chamber of Representatives on Jun. 2 and Jun. 3. The final tallies give the Civic Democratic Party (ODS), the Christian and Democratic Union - Czech People’s Party (KDU-CSL) and the Green Party (SZ) 100 seats in the lower house, with the remaining 100 seats going to the Czech Social Democratic Party (CSSD) and the Communist Party of Bohemia and Moravia (KSCM). CSSD leader Jiri Paroubek has said the Czech Republic’s participation in the missile shield should be settled in a nationwide referendum. Conversely, ODS leader Mirek Topolanek believes the issue should be decided by elected lawmakers. Polling Data Do you support or oppose the construction of an anti-missile site in Czech territory? Support 17% Oppose 83% -------- MILITARY -------- arms US using 'dangerous new form of weapon' "From the 'pain ray' to the 'death ray': Have direct energy weapons already been deployed by U.S. forces in Iraq?" By Brett Wagner, president of the California Center for Strategic Studies 23 July 2006 http://uk.oneworld.net/article/view/136518/1/5795 Nothing in my training or experience as a national security specialist prepared me for what I witnessed last month when viewing a newly released documentary news video concerning an extremely controversial new generation of U.S. weaponry which may have already been secretly deployed in Iraq. This sort of thing is not for the faint of heart. For the past few years the U.S. military has been developing new technology based on "directed energy" yielding two new types of weapons. The first, "Active Denial System," has been nicknamed the "pain ray" -- and with good reason. It fires out millimeter waves -- a sort of cousin of microwaves, in the 95 GHz range. The invisible beams penetrate just 1/64th of an inch beneath the skin, directly affecting the nerve endings, and a 2-second burst can heat the skin to 130 degrees. Charles Heal, a widely recognized authority on nonlethal weapons who has dubbed the ray the "Holy Grail of crowd control," likened it to having a hot iron pressed against the skin. Deploying the pain ray would be a clear violation of international law, which prohibits weapons whose primary intention is to inflict pain. Earlier this year, a U.S. military commander in Iraq requested that, despite the ban, the weapon be deployed immediately. But following the efforts of our organization and others opposing that request, Washington has indefinitely delayed any deployment pending further testing and analysis. The second form of directed energy weaponry fires out microwaves, a form of energy well known for its use in modern kitchen appliances. I have nicknamed this weapon the "death ray" -- and with good reason. Exposing mammals to microwaves is known to make them explode. The documentary news video in question, which was released online recently (16 May 2006) by a major Italian news service, examines evidence that the U.S. military has deployed – dating back to the 2003 battle for Baghdad Airport – a new generation of weaponry likely based on firing microwaves. Viewer discretion is advised: even as a former professor for the U.S. Naval War College, this goes way beyond my comfort zone Judging from the reported effects of the weaponry, it likely includes "speed of light" technology defying the generic term "laser" and it is my professional opinion that it also likely includes the use of microwaves, judging from the descriptions of bodies that seem to have inexplicably exploded. However, I cannot imagine the scientific explanation for the cadavers that reportedly shrunk to the size of approximately one-meter in length after being exposed to some sort of ray (the cause of death) and then inadvertently struck by bullets. Neither do I have an explanation for what one eyewitness describes as a bus transformed "like a cloth, like a wet cloth" and shrunk to the size of a Volkswagen. To me, it sounds like a very intense form of microwaves. The statements by Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and General Myers excerpted from a 2003 archived press conference are especially revealing: JOURNALIST: Mr. Secretary, can I ask you a question about some of the technology that you're developing to fight the war on terrorists, specifically directed energy and high-powered microwave technology? When do you envision that you can weaponize that type of technology? DONALD RUMSFELD (appearing noticeably uncomfortable with the question): In the normal order of things, when you invest in research and development and begin a developmental project, you don't have any intention or expectations that one would use it. On the other hand, the real world intervenes from time to time, and you reach in there and take something out that is still in a developmental stage, and you might use it. JOURNALIST: But you sound like you're willing to experiment with it. GENERAL MYERS: Yeah, I think that's the point. And I think we have from the beginning of this conflict… I think General Franks [commander of U.S. forces in Iraq] has been very open to looking at new things, if there are new things available, and has been willing to put them into the fight, even before they've been fully wrung out… And we will continue to do that. Also noteworthy was the inclusion of footage, albeit very brief, near the end of the documentary of the "pain ray" being tested on a person identified as an American soldier. The person exposed to the ray obviously experienced excruciating pain before ducking quickly out of the line of fire. The closing remarks in the documentary by highly-respected military analyst William Arkin echo my widely-publicized concerns regarding the implications of the pain ray for use in crowd control in the U.S. – and the potential threat to our basic civil liberties, such as our First Amendment rights of peaceable assembly and to petition the government for a redress of our grievances (not to mention undermining the norms expressed by Sixth Amendment prohibitions against cruel and unusual punishment). These types of weapons pose a dire threat to the world as we know it and their deployment must be prevented at all cost. At the very least, they could ignite a new global arms race, which in turn would lead to increasing global instability or worse. We simply must not allow this "Brave New World" to enter our own. Brett Wagner is president of the California Center for Strategic Studies (www.TheCaliforniaCenter.org). Additional research was provided by CCSS analysts Jacob Shepard and Clay Fordahl. (The video cited can be viewed in English, Italian or Arabic by clicking on http://www.rainews24.it/ran24/inchieste/guerre_stellari_iraq.asp) The California Center for Strategic Studies is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) tax exempt educational institute as recognized by the U.S. Internal Revenue Service, and is incorporated in the State of California. -------- mideast Flight of 700,000 refugees puts massive strain on Syria By Paul Cochrane in Damascus Published: 23 July 2006 UK Independent http://news.independent.co.uk/world/middle_east/article1191945.ece With nearly 370 killed and 700,000 Lebanese displaced following Israel's 12-day bombardment of Lebanon, tens of thousands of people are trying to flee across the border to Syria. Lebanon's border crossings with Syria to the north and east have been inundated with people, with up to a million Lebanese seeking refuge, according to state-run Syria TV. The Lebanese government and the United Nations yesterday warned that there is an impending humanitarian crisis in Lebanon. The exodus is putting a serious strain on Syria, which has 300,000 Palestinian refugees and over 450,000 Iraqis who fled Iraq after the US-led invasion in 2003. With hotels full in Damascus, people are staying in orphanages, schools and university dormitories, or travelling to neighbouring Jordan, or to other Syrian cities. Flights out of Syria are booked up for at least five days, despite airlines increasing the number of outward flights. At the eastern border, the Red Crescent welcomed vehicles packed with people and belongings with bottled water, food and medical assistance. "We have had people come to us with burns, broken bones and other wounds from the bombings," said a representative. The usual one-and-a-half-hour trip to the border from Beirut is taking up to nine hours, said one bus driver, who, like his colleagues, is having to negotiate difficult mountain roads and use shortwave radios to relay the safety of certain routes. After dropping off passengers at the border, public buses return to Lebanon. Two empty buses returning to the Lebanese capital were bombed on Friday in the Bekaa valley. People entering Syria showed mixed feelings, relief at being safe and utter sadness. German-Iranian businessman Mohamed Reza was shaking every time he raised a bottle of water to his mouth. A bomb had landed 200m from him. "I wasn't fearful there, but I am now," he said. "The Israelis will destroy the country." REFUGEES, EVACUEES AND VICTIMS OF WAR LIZA HECHT, 70, FROM HAIFA "Tuesday is fairly normal; we have several alarms prompting us to go into the shelter. Our neighbours have gone south to stay with their families and so our block is empty. We keep the phone with us so we can call our friends and family to see how everybody is. We don't go out, don't go to the movies; we look at the TV to see what is going on. "On Friday I managed to go shopping, although many of the shops are closed. When I got back we heard the warning sirens. We have to be aware that sometimes you hear the booms of the rockets exploding before the sirens sound. This is the way life goes on. We call it a 'mini-war'. It is not a war between armies but between civilians living in their houses." DR MARIA HOLT, 51, UNIVERSITY OF WESTMINSTER. EVACUATED ON HMS 'GLOUCESTER' "Luckily I have a friend who works in the Beirut embassy. She took my details down and then it was just a matter of waiting for them to contact me. They never did. "I could hear explosions and felt it was all accelerating very quickly and I was very anxious. I had heard nothing at all from the embassy. Then I heard HMS Gloucester was on its way. I tried the embassy again, but was not able to get through. On Wednesday my friend from the embassy phoned and said go down to the port before 3pm. At the docks there were hundreds milling around. I managed to get on to HMS Gloucester and we left quickly once it was full. The sailors really looked after us. It took six hours to get to Cyprus." CHAFIC NAAMANI, 28, MUSLIM ENGINEER FROM BEIRUT "My parents' home faces a Hizbollah office so we decided to go to our apartment in the mountains. We are still there. On Wednesday I was coming back from work and saw refugees in two cars that had run out of petrol. There was a guy wearing pyjamas who ran screaming into the road. He was desperate to get to Jounieh so he could find somewhere to shelter, because all the Beirut schools housing refugees were full. The guy was having a nervous breakdown; his face was blue. I drove him for an hour and he said nothing for the whole way; he just sat there trying not to cry. I wonder what kind of place this is. I wonder if I should just pack my bags, leave and find something else." MAJIDA HAWILA, 53, MOTHER OF EIGHT, FROM MAZOURIYA, NEAR TYRE. NOW SHELTERING IN A BEIRUT SCHOOL "On Tuesday night the Israelis bombed a quarter of the houses in our village. The people who are being killed are not Hizbollah. "On Thursday we had to leave. My son drove me, my husband and five of my eight children to Beirut. The journey should have taken at most only two hours but it took 10. We are now staying in the Karmel Zeitoun elementary school in East Beirut with 400 other people. People are stressed and shocked and although there is enough food right now, no one knows how long the food will hold out for. If this goes on and we can't return to our homes then we will fight. We will not be made into refugees. We are all Lebanese and we will fight for Lebanon." -------- OTHER -------- environment Amazon rainforest 'could become a desert' And that could speed up global warming with 'incalculable consequences', says alarming new research The Independent (U.K.), July 23, 2006 http://www.heatisonline.org/contentserver/objecthandlers/index.cfm?id=6016&method=full The vast Amazon rainforest is on the brink of being turned into desert, with catastrophic consequences for the world's climate, alarming research suggests. And the process, which would be irreversible, could begin as early as next year. Studies by the blue-chip Woods Hole Research Centre, carried out in Amazonia, have concluded that the forest cannot withstand more than two consecutive years of drought without breaking down. Scientists say that this would spread drought into the northern hemisphere, including Britain, and could massively accelerate global warming with incalculable consequences, spinning out of control, a process that might end in the world becoming uninhabitable. The alarming news comes in the midst of a heatwave gripping Britain and much of Europe and the United States. Temperatures in the south of England reached a July record of 36.3C on Tuesday. And it comes hard on the heels of a warning by an international group of experts, led by the Eastern Orthodox " pope" Bartholomew, last week that the forest is rapidly approaching a " tipping point" that would lead to its total destruction. The research ­ carried out by the Massachusetts-based Woods Hole centre in Santarem on the Amazon river ­ has taken even the scientists conducting it by surprise. When Dr Dan Nepstead started the experiment in 2002 ­ by covering a chunk of rainforest the size of a football pitch with plastic panels to see how it would cope without rain ­ he surrounded it with sophisticated sensors, expecting to record only minor changes. The trees managed the first year of drought without difficulty. In the second year, they sunk their roots deeper to find moisture, but survived. But in year three, they started dying. Beginning with the tallest the trees started to come crashing down, exposing the forest floor to the drying sun. By the end of the year the trees had released more than two-thirds of the carbon dioxide they have stored during their lives, helping to act as a break on global warming. Instead they began accelerating the climate change. As we report today on pages 28 and 29, the Amazon now appears to be entering its second successive year of drought, raising the possibility that it could start dying next year. The immense forest contains 90 billion tons of carbon, enough in itself to increase the rate of global warming by 50 per cent. Dr Nepstead expects "mega-fires" rapidly to sweep across the drying jungle. With the trees gone, the soil will bake in the sun and the rainforest could become desert. Dr Deborah Clark from the University of Missouri, one of the world's top forest ecologists, says the research shows that "the lock has broken" on the Amazon ecosystem. She adds: the Amazon is "headed in a terrible direction". Fred Pearce is the author of 'The Last Generation' (Eden Project Books), published earlier this year -------- -------- genetics -------- -------- health -------- -------- imf / world bank / wto (economics) -------- poverty -------- ACTIVISTS -------- --------