"Kim Jong Un's Feats for Army Building" (Korean News)

I don't understand how someone whose reign is still so brief could already have "undying feats" to his credit. That's what it says here:

On the army day, the servicepersons and civilians of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea pay deep respects to Supreme Commander of the Korean People's Army Kim Jong Un, who is bringing a new heyday in the history of the revolutionary armed forces.

Kim Jong Un performed undying feats for building up the Juche-based armed forces, always accompanying leader Kim Jong Il on the road of the Songun (military-first) revolution and acting his closest military aide.

He guided the armed forces to give full play to the politico-ideological might as the army of the leader and the party and developed the Juche-based military idea, theory and war methods on an overall way.

He made a signal contribution to turning the Korean People's Army into an elite army equipped with self-defensive nuclear deterrent and up-to-date military hardware.

With superb commanding art, matchless courage and toughest countermeasure, he has neutralized the enemies' military provocations and war moves.

Thanks to his Songun leadership, the KPA could create the Huichon Speed, a new Chollima Speed, and work epoch-making miracles in the drive to build a thriving nation.

After assuming the supreme commandership, he chose the Seoul Ryu Kyong Su 105 Guards Tank Division of the KPA as the first stop in his field guidance. Regarding soldiers as his closest comrades-in-arms, he made inspection tours of frontline military posts and remote islets, caring so much for them.

Therefore, the men and officers of the KPA have regarded him as the dignity and destiny of the KPA, with firm faith that led by him they would always emerge victorious.

All servicepersons are now filled with resolve to devotedly defend him under the slogan "Let Us Defend with Our Very Lives the Party Central Committee Headed by the Great Comrade Kim Jong Un!" and fully discharge their mission in the struggle for national reunification and accomplishment of the revolutionary cause of Juche.

Bleah!

"Youth Vow to Become 5 Million Human Bullets and Bombs"

I assume that means their starting number is 5 million. If, say, 3 million youths became "5 million human bullets and bombs," that would be quite a trick, even for the might of Songun:

Youth and students held a meeting at the Youth Park Open-air Theatre in Pyongyang on Tuesday to vow to beat to death the group of rat-like Lee Myung Bak, the sworn enemy.

A statement issued by a spokesman for the Supreme Command of the Korean People's Army was read out to be followed by speeches.

At a time when the whole mankind is unsparing of its admiration and praise of celebrations of the Day of the Sun as they fully demonstrated the invincible might of Songun Korea and the true picture of single-minded unity, the group of rat-like Lee Myung Bak perpetuated without hesitation such hideous provocations as daring hurt the dignity of the supreme leadership of the DPRK, they said, and went on:

The hooliganism perpetrated by this rat-like group, obsessed with confrontation with compatriots, is the crimes that put the successive ruling quarters and dictators of south Korea into the shade and a blatant challenge and a clear declaration of a war against the DPRK.

The hearts of the youth and students across the country are burning with the determination to wipe out the hysteric group, the root cause of misfortune from this land, to the last man.

Now is the time for the young people who grew up under the care of the great Songun brilliant commander to mercilessly punish the provocateurs, they declared, volunteering to join or rejoin the Korean People's Army.

Once the Supreme Commander of the KPA issues an order, the youth and students will become 5 million human bullets and bombs to deal retaliatory blows of justice to cut off the windpipes of rat-like group at a single strike and accomplish the historic cause of national reunification.

A resolution of revenge was adopted at the meeting.

Why doesn't it occur to them that if this is all just talk and they don't do anything, they'll look awfully Songun foolish?

“special actions . . . will reduce all the rat-like groups and the bases for provocations to ashes in three or four minutes”

Yes, dear readers, its that time again:

The special operation action group of the Supreme Command of the Korean People's Army issued the following notice Monday:

The indignation of the army and people of the DPRK at the group of rat-like Lee Myung Bak is running high.

Shouts "Destroy", "Beat to death" and "Tear to death" are ringing out on this land.

But the Lee group of traitors is still doing mischiefs, not coming to its senses.

On April 20 they toured the "Institute for Unification Studies", den of rats, in Suyu-dong, Kangbuk District, Seoul where they called for "orienting to system change in the north" if it does not give up its nuclear and missile ambitions, saying that "what is needed for the north now is not only bread but individual freedom and human rights". They have gone so impudent as to assert that "co-op farms should be disorganized and agricultural reform be effected to help improve the livelihood of the citizens in the north".

On April 19 they appeared in the puppet Scientific Institute for National Defense where they heaped praises on a few poor-looking missiles, saying they have precision and power enough to immediately strike any part of the DPRK, inviolable land. They had temerity of dare talking about "striking the supreme headquarters through office window".

Puppet Defense Minister Kim Kwan Jin and other military warmongers danced to the tune.

The situation proves that the group of traitors has long lost its reasoning power.

In the meantime, paid conservative media which had long been reduced to a waiting maid of the group of traitors, worked with blood-shot eyes to build up public opinion in favor of the rats' group.

Involved in the campaign were Dong-A Ilbo situated in the downtown Seoul as well as KBS, MBC, YTN and other media institutions.

The Lee group should have apologized for its high treasons tens of thousands of times and chosen death by itself.

This group is, however, challenging the north, grinding its teeth.

In view of the situation getting graver as the days go by, the KPA Supreme Command special operation action group issues the following notice upon authorization:

The special actions of our revolutionary armed forces will start soon to meet the reckless challenge of the group of traitors.

Those actions are an eruption of the public anger and resentment and a sacred war of all service personnel and people to protect the dignity of our supreme leadership.

Their targets are the Lee Myung Bak group of traitors, the arch criminals, and the group of rat-like elements including conservative media destroying the mainstay of the fair public opinion.

Once the above-said special actions kick off, they will reduce all the rat-like groups and the bases for provocations to ashes in three or four minutes, in much shorter time, by unprecedented peculiar means and methods of our own style.

Our revolutionary armed forces do not make an empty talk.

If you read all of that, go get a cold beer out of the fridge and reflect on your good fortune in having been born an Imperialist.

North Korea and Iran: groovin' on the same inner plane

This is an article from Korean Central News Agency site, Korean News. You would think, however, that it came from Islamic Republic News Agency or some other fountain of Khomeinist blather in English because, while brief, it is an especially puerile and empty propaganda piece in which Ahmadinejad observes that "in order to successfully discharge its duty, the police should maintain good relations with the people":

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad called upon the police to further enhance its role in ensuring social security and improving the traffic order. He said this at a recent national meeting of police commanding officers.

Referring to the achievements made in the field of social security in the past, he said that in order to successfully discharge its duty, the police should maintain good relations with the people.

The police should respect and protect the dignity of the people, he noted, adding that the police cannot fulfill its responsibility and duty without their assistance.

They have to be vigilant to foil all World Arrogance plots, you see.

"Punishing North Korea's people" (LA Times)

Here is an editorial from the LA Times editors saying that "the United States should do its utmost to alleviate starvation and malnutrition without regard to geopolitics. Food aid should not be promised or withheld for political, diplomatic or strategic reasons." So no cut-off of food aid after North Korea immediately scheduled a missile launch in violation of the agreement they made for the food. According to the editorial:

The Obama administration says that's not what it is doing. Indeed, it is not characterizing the suspension of food aid as tit for tat for the bungled April 13 launch, which the U.S. sees as a violation of Pyongyang's promise to refrain from long-range missile launches. Rather, it argues, a regime that can't be trusted to abide by understandings about its military activities likewise can't be relied on to allow efficient distribution of food to the needy. The administration also says that, in light of North Korea's provocative behavior, it is concerned about the well-being of Americans who might be sent to that country to aid in food distribution.

Those arguments are not terribly persuasive. Though it's true that shipments of rice and beans to the North have in the past been diverted for the use of the military and their families, the suspension of food aid last week seems more like retribution for the attempted launch than a reaction to concern that the food might not get safely to its intended recipients. [...]

What exactly isn't "terribly persuasive"? Of course, North Korea will divert the food aid to party members and those "servicepoeple" we always hear about here who are rallying close around the headquarters of the revolution. Obama's denial of US reaction to the rocket-launch might be clumsy, but putting the army first is the theme of North Korea's constant boasts.

"Iran Decodes US Drone Intel" (Fars News-Iran)

This is getting some coverage in the Western Press. One might as well read it from the horse's mouth:

Senior Iranian military officials announced that the country's experts have decoded the intelligence gathering system and memory hard discs of the United States' highly advanced RQ-170 Sentinel stealth aircraft that was downed by Iran in December after violating the country's airspace.

Speaking to FNA, Commander of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) Aerospace Forces Brigadier General Amir Ali Hajizadeh revealed some data taken from the aircraft's intelligence system to discourage his counterparts in Pentagon who had alleged that Iranians would not succeed in decoding the spy drone's memory and intelligence devices.

"This plane is seen as a national capital for us and our words should not disclose all the information that we have very easily."

"Yet, I provide four cues in here to let the Americans know how deep we could penetrate into (the intelligence systems and devices of) this drone," he added.

Hajizadeh stated that the drone parts had been transferred to California for technical works in October 2010, adding that the drone was later transferred to Kandahar, Afghanistan in November 2010 and had a flight in there.

The commander said that the drone had experienced some technical flaws in its Kandahar flight in November, but the US experts failed resolve the problems at the time.

Hajizadeh added that the RQ-170 was then sent back to an airfield near Los Angeles in December 2010 for tests on its censors and parts, adding that the drone had a number of test flights in there.

As a forth cue to prove Iran's access to the drone's hidden memory, the commander mentioned that the spy drone's memory device has revealed that it had flown over Al-Qaeda Leader Osama bin Laden's hideout in Pakistan two weeks before his death.

"Had we not accessed the plane's soft wares and hard discs, we wouldn't have been able to achieve these facts," Hajizadeh said, reiterating that Iran's military experts are in full command of the drone intel and hold a good knowledge of the drone parts and programs.

The unmanned surveillance plane lost by the United States in Iran was a stealth aircraft being used for secret missions by the CIA.

The aircraft is among the highly sensitive surveillance platform in the CIA's fleet that was shaped and designed to evade enemy defenses.

The drone is the first such loss by the US.

The RQ-170 has special coatings and a batwing shape designed to help it penetrate other nations' air defenses undetected. The existence of the aircraft, which is made by Lockheed Martin, has been known since 2009, when a model was photographed at the main US airfield in Kandahar, Afghanistan.

The revelation came after Russia and China asked Tehran to provide them with information on the capture US drone.

Ahmad Karimpour, an adviser to Iran's defense minister, said on Friday that Tehran has received requests from many countries for information on the RQ-170 Sentinel, but Moscow and Beijing have been most aggressive in their pursuit of details on the drone.

"Pyongyang City Army-People Rally Vows to Wipe out Lee Myung Bak Group" (Korean News)

The south, we learn, recently "hurt the dignity of the [North Korean] supreme leadership," which, according to this, involved criticizing them for spending money on their Kim Il Sung centennial festival instead of feeding people. The present fit of vituperation includes an excursus on the nature of the rat:

A Pyongyang city army-people rally was held at Kim Il Sung Square Friday to vow to wipe out the Lee Myung Bak group, the sworn enemy, in this land and sky.

Attending the rally were senior party, state and army officials, officials of the party, the armed forces and power bodies, social organizations, ministries and national institutions, officers and men of the Korean People's Army (KPA) and the Korean People's Internal Security Forces, officials in the fields of science, education, literature and arts, public health and media and working people and youth and students as well as overseas Koreans and the chief of the Pyongyang mission of the Anti-Imperialist National Democratic Front.

Present there on invitation were diplomatic envoys of various countries and members of military attaches corps here and foreign guests.

The statement for the KPA Supreme Command was read out at the rally.

The floor was taken by representatives of the KPA officers and men, working class, agricultural workers, youth and students and women.

Yom Myong Su, an officer of the KPA, said the service persons of the KPA will not pardon the rat-like Lee Myung Bak group who hurt the dignity of the supreme leadership of the DPRK by setting in motion aged reactionaries as miserable as paupers, gangster-like students and ultra-right conservative media.

The guy of Lee acting just like a puppy knowing no fear of a tiger is a half-wit and as disgusting as a rat, the officer noted.

Pong Won Ik, vice-chairman of the Central Committee of the General Federation of Trade Unions of Korea, said that what rat-like Lee has done is nothing but the thrice-cursed crimes as he is no more than a political ignorant who only rummaged in a ditch at the bottom of the River Han and an idiot without an equal in the world.

Kim Hwa Suk, chairperson of the Sadong District Cooperative Farm Management Committee, noted that from olden times a rat has been considered as a disgusting animal as it lives inside a dirty pile of compost and eats dregs thrown away by people. This description is fit for rat-like Lee Myung Bak of modern brand, the chairperson added.

Kim Nam Chol, department director of the C.C., the youth league, said that it is disgrace and insult to a human being to wrest an apology from rat-like Myung Bak who is too miserable to be beaten and trampled down to death and the worst underwit as he is unable to properly discern a satellite from a long-range missile. This rat-like Lee group, the arch criminal blocking national unity and poisonous grass, deserves only a stern punishment, he pointed out.

Jon Song Ae of the Kyonghung Guidance Bureau vowed to more dynamically turn out in a nationwide sacred war to beat to death at an early date the worst political gangsters and the hordes of rabid rats gnawing at everything whenever they open their mouths till none of them is left.

The participants repeatedly shouted slogans like "Let us shower rat-like Lee Myung Bak group with fire of retaliation!" and "Let us cut off windpipes of rat-like Lee Myung Bak group!"

Then followed a demonstration.

After the slogan-shouting?

"Iran will cut oil to ‘whole Europe’ if sanctions not lifted: minister" (Mehr News-Irran)

They don't need those oil revenues anyway:

Oil Minister Rostam Qasemi threatened on Thursday that Iran will cut oil export to all European countries if they do not lift sanctions on Tehran after the next round of talks in Baghdad.

After nuclear negotiations in Istanbul on April 14, which was described as positive, Iran and the 5+1 group (the five permanent members of the UN Security Council and Germany) are scheduled to meet again in Baghdad on May 23.

The minister said the Oil Ministry has “officially” cut crude exports to Britain and France, however, he added a stop of Iran’s oil export to refiners in Greece, Spain, and Germany is not “official”.

Qasemi also said Greece is paying a large sum of its oil debts to Iran.

The minister went on to say that the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) has signed new contracts with some customers so that if oil export to Europe is halted completely Iran will have alternative buyers.

"Iran arrests 15 Zionist regime-linked spies" (IRIB-Iran)

Is there any other kind?

The Iranian Intelligence Ministry has announced that it has recently arrested over a dozen Zionist regime-linked spies and terrorists.

The Intelligence Ministry issued a statement on Tuesday to provide more details about recent operations by Iranian intelligence forces, in which it said that 15 people, both Iranians and foreigners, have been detained.

On April 10, the Iranian Intelligence Ministry said it busted a major terrorism and sabotage network with links to the Zionist regime.

At the time, the ministry said that further details about the number of terrorists, their missions, the equipment seized, and the terrorists’ bases would be released in the future.

The latest statement said that one of the missions of the terrorists was to identify and assassinate one of the country's specialists.

The terrorist group had planned to carry out a terrorist act on February 10, one day before the 22nd of the Iranian calendar month of Bahman (February 11), which marks the anniversary of the Islamic Revolution of 1979, the statement added.

The Intelligence Ministry also said that a Zionist regime's spy base in a neighboring country, which was run by Mossad spy agency to carry out operations against the interests of Iran, had also been uncovered.

This is not the first time Iran has arrested foreign spies.

On May 30, 2011, members of a CIA espionage and sabotage network were arrested by the Iranian Intelligence Ministry.

On November 24, 2011, Iran announced the arrest of a dozen other CIA spies, who were found to have been on a mission to sabotage the country's nuclear facilities and other important sites.

"Iranian MP Warns of Wahhabis' Big Conspiracy against Shiites" (Fars News-Iran)

You'll note that he ultimately blames the West:

A senior Iranian lawmaker said the recent distribution of a blasphemous book which insults Shiite Muslims' religious beliefs is part of a "major plot" staged by Wahhabis but designed and led by certain western states which intend to sow discord among Shiite and Sunni Muslims.

"We believe that such behaviors are part of a bigger conspiracy," Rapporteur of the parliament's National Security and Foreign Policy Commission Kazzem Jalali told FNA on Wednesday, taking the West responsible for persuading Wahhabis to show such behaviors in a bid to create a rift among the Shiite and Sunni Muslims.

He urged Riyadh to show more vigilance against such conspiring moves, and said, "The Saudi officials should counter this move wisely and take care not to step onto the (West's) trap."

His remarks came after Wahhabis distributed a book in Saudi Arabia in recent weeks, which insults Imams, leaders' of the Shiite community after Prophet Mohammad (PBUH).

Wahhabism is a strictly orthodox Sunni Muslim sect from Saudi Arabia. The sect was founded by Abdul Wahhab (1703-1792). They claim to be striving to purify Islamic beliefs and are strongly opposed to Shiism. Osama bin Laden, Head of the al-Qaeda terrorist group, was a Wahhabi Muslim.

Officials not just in Iran, but all through the region have on various occasions denounced extremist measures of the Wahhabis in certain countries, urging Muslim communities for more vigilance and unity.

In his remarks in October, Commander of Iran's Basij (volunteer) force Brigadier General Mohammad Reza Naqdi underlined the necessity of solidarity in the Muslim world, saying unity among Islamic sects foils enemies' plots and helps to the growth and expansion of Islamic awakening.

"Today, Shiites and Sunnis have together defused the inauspicious plots of the enemies of the Revolution through unity and brotherhood and expanded the Islamic awakening through unity, vigilance and awareness…" Naqdi said at the time.

Pointing to the growing tides of Islamic awakening in the region, he noted, "In Muslim states, the Islamic awakening is also the result of the unity between the Shiites and Sunnis."

Also in July, Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said enemies are deeply fearful of unity and solidarity among the regional and Muslim states and are, thus, seeking to sow discord among the regional nations through different plots. [...]

He's a plothead . . .

"Commander Terms Acceptance of N. Rights by Powers 'Winning Card' for Iran" (Fars News-Iran)

Just pointing this out:

A senior commander of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) said that Iran now has a wining card in his hand after the six world powers acknowledged Iran's nuclear rights during their latest round of negotiations with Iranian diplomats in Istanbul, Turkey, on Saturday.

"In the recent meeting with (the Group) 5+1 (the five permanent UN Security Council members plus Germany) and as the economic siege (of Iran) is at its peak and despite the efforts made by the arrogant powers to prevent a nuclear Iran, you witnessed that all of them have accepted Iran's right to access nuclear technology," IRGC Lieutenant Commander Brigadier General Hossein Salami said on Monday.

He said this means that the words of the Iranian nation's words have materialized and the West has been forced to retreat.

"That is a winning card for the glorious history of the sacred Islamic Republic system," Salami underscored.

Following the Istanbul talks, EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton who led the delegations of the world powers in the talks with Iran underlined that the Group 5+1 respects Tehran's right to use peaceful nuclear technology.

"We have agreed that the Non-proliferation Treaty (NPT) forms a key basis for what must be serious engagement to ensure all the obligations under the treaty are met by Iran while fully respecting Iran's right for the peaceful use of nuclear energy," Ashton said in a news conference following the meeting with Iranian chief negotiator Saeed Jalili.

A day earlier, the Foreign Ministers of India, Russia and China reiterated Iran's right to access civilian nuclear technology and urged a diplomatic end to the Iran nuclear issue through dialogue and talks between Tehran and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

The RIC (Russia-India-China) ministerial meeting was attended by Indian External Affairs Minister S M Krishna and his Russian and Chinese counterparts Sergey Lavrov and Yang Jiechi, where the three top diplomats held discussions on key regional and international issues, including the Iran-West nuclear standoff.

The ministers recognized Iran's right to peaceful use of nuclear energy and supported the resolution of the issues through political and diplomatic means and dialogue, including between the IAEA and Iran.

Despite the rules enshrined in the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) entitling every member state, including Iran, to the right of uranium enrichment, Tehran is now under four rounds of UN Security Council sanctions for turning down West's calls to give up its right of uranium enrichment.

Tehran has dismissed West's demands as politically tainted and illogical, stressing that sanctions and pressures merely consolidate Iranians' national resolve to continue the path.

Washington and its Western allies accuse Iran of trying to develop nuclear weapons under the cover of a civilian nuclear program, while they have never presented any corroborative evidence to substantiate their allegations. Iran denies the charges and insists that its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes only.

"Korean People Delighted at Erection of Great Men's Statues"

Ahem:

The Korean people are overcome with great joy at the erection of statues of President Kim Il Sung and General Secretary Kim Jong Il on Mansu Hill.

The statues were unveiled on the occasion of Kim Il Sung's 100th birth anniversary (April 15), the Day of the Sun.

Kim Yong Hwang, an academician of Kim Il Sung University, told KCNA:

"The erection of statues represents the Korean people's deep admiration for the greatness of Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il, who performed undying feats for the times and history with unique ideas and tireless efforts.

Indeed, the erection is the greatest event for the Korean people, as it glorifies the great men's brilliant career and displays the dignity of Kim Il Sung's nation."

Kim Kye Jong, a candidate academician of Kim Chaek University of Technology, said:

"We are grateful to the dear respected Kim Jong Un for the erection of such admirable statues.

To have statues of Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il erected together was the unanimous wish of all the Korean people.

This wish was realized by Kim Jong Un."

Prof. and Dr. Ri Yong Su at Hamhung University of Chemical Engineering, said:

"Kim Jong Un's strong sense of moral obligation led to the erection of statues. The Korean people's desire to hold Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il in high esteem for all ages has been materialized by him.

I would be glad if Kim Jong Il's statue is erected in South Hamgyong Province where I live.

I will devote myself to glorifying his undying feats."

"Lawmaker Blames Zionist Lobbies for UAE's Claims on Iranian Islands" (Fars News-Iran)

The "Zionist Lobbies" are probably also to blame for making Ahmadinejad short:

An Iranian lawmaker voiced parliament's support for President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's visit to the Persian Gulf island of Abu Musa, and added that the Emiratis' remarks against the visit came under the influence of the Zionist lobbies.

After President Ahmadinejad visited Abu Musa earlier this week, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) recalled its ambassador from Tehran Saif Mohammed Abid al-Zaabi in protest at Ahmadinejad's official trip to the Iranian island, alleging that the island is part of its territories.

Speaking to FNA, member of the parliament's National Security and Foreign Policy Commission Zohreh Elahian noted that such remarks will not undermine Iran's sovereignty over the Persian Gulf Island.

"Such claims by the UAE and the Persian Gulf littoral Arab states have been made under the Zionist lobby and the Zionist regime is seeking to sow discord among the Persian Gulf littoral states as part of its Iranophobia project, and this project has now surfaced in the baseless and unfounded claims raised by the Arab states regarding Iran's sovereignty over the three Islands," he noted.

International documents clearly show that the three islands of the Greater Tunb, the Lesser Tunb and Abu Musa which were historically owned by Iran, temporarily fell to British control in 1903. The islands were returned to Iran based on an agreement in 1971 before the UAE was born.

Iran has repeatedly declared that its ownership of the three islands is unquestionable.

Under international law, no state can defy any agreements, which came into being before its establishment.

Yet, the UAE continues to make territorial claims against the Islamic Republic despite historical evidence and international regulations.

I included the picture because the article seems to be confused about Ms. Elahian's gender.

Kosher and Joyous Passover!

I usually don't post on Chol HaMo'eid. See you when it's all over.

Tags: Judaism, Passover, Pesach, matzah

"Egyptian Presidential Contender Urges Cut of Gas Supplies to Israel" (Fars-Iran)

It is funny that the article makes it sound as if the only Egyptian objection to the gas deal is the price:

A prominent Egyptian politician and a candidate in the upcoming presidential election said that he will support Palestinian resistance against Israel and cut gas exports to Israel if he wins the race.

Speaking to FNA in Cairo on Wednesday, Hamdin Sabahi, an independent candidate, stressed that he would adopt a tough policy against Israel if he wins the upcoming presidential election in his Arab Muslim country.

"If I win the election, I will cut gas exports to Israel, support the Palestinian resistance and end the siege of Gaza," Sabahi said.

Israel receives about 40 percent of its gas from Egypt. Israel Electric Corp., the main buyer of Egyptian gas, used imported crude oil and diesel to make up for the shortfall.

Egypt's 20-year gas deal with Israel, signed in the Mubarak era, is unpopular with Egyptians, with critics accusing Israel of not paying enough for the gas.

Sabahi will run for election in his native constituency of El-Borollos in the Nile Delta governorate of Kafr El-Sheikh.

Sabahi, whose membership of the Nasserist Party was frozen four years ago, will contest the elections as an independent.

"Truth behind 9/11 will annihilate Israel" (IRIB Radio-Iran)

That has to be the Title of the Year. The article comes with a video. I didn't watch it, but that doesn't mean you can't:

A US Marine Corps veteran and author asserts that Zionist regime masterminded the 9/11 attacks, saying if Americans were informed of this, they would exterminate the illegal regime.

Alan Sabrosky, writer and consultant specializing in national and international security affairs, said in a clip appearing on the public video-sharing website You Tube “I have had long conversations over the past two weeks with contacts at the Army War College, at the Headquarters Marine Corps, and I have made it absolutely clear in both cases that it is 100 percent certain that 9/11 was a Mossad operation.”

Sabrosky said his colleagues who are still serving in uniform initially react with incredulity to his assertions but upon his explanations regarding the controlled demolition of the buildings their disbelief gives way to rage.

He said “First is disbelief, and what I show them immediately afterwards is an interview with a Danish demolitions expert named Danny Jowenko, and it shows the third building at the World Trade Center going down - WTC7.”

He added “The thing that's necessary is to tell people: three buildings went down; the third was not hit by a plane, it was wired for controlled demolition, therefore, all of them were wired for controlled demolition. And at that point the reaction is rage. First disbelief, and then rage.”

Sabrosky said if the Americans were apprised of the truth behind the attacks, they would not hesitate to eliminate Zionist regime without any consideration for the costs involved.

Just like the definite article that got eliminated from that last sentence?

A thought for Yud-Alef Nissan

What is the idea of a birthday?

Yud-Alef Nissan is the Rebbe’s birthday. A birthday is more than a day for songs and celebrations. Instead, a birthday is a day when mazalo gover, the spiritual source of a person’s soul shines with power. When we say “the spiritual source of a person’s soul,” we mean something more than our conscious thought powers. We have our thoughts and our feelings. And then we possess an inner spiritual core from which those thoughts and feelings spring forth. This spiritual core is the mazal that shines powerfully on a person’s birthday.

Since a person’s mazal shines powerfully on that day, he should use its influence to focus on his individual mission and align all the particular elements of his life with it. As the Previous Rebbe taught, on a birthday a person should spend time in solitude, thinking over the purpose of his life, correcting those matters that need to be amended, and making resolutions with regard to his conduct in the future.

The Rebbe’s birthday is not merely a personal event, affecting him alone. On the contrary, the very name Rebbe is an acronym for the Hebrew words , “head of the Jewish people.” The head contains the nerve center for the entire body, allowing all its diverse organs and limbs to function together as a single whole. Similarly, a Rebbe is a comprehensive soul whose life is lived in consciousness of others and whose efforts are devoted to tightening the connection between them. As such, the Rebbe’s birthday is a day which impacts us all.

What is the Rebbe’s mazal and where is it directed? In one of his letters, he writes: “From the days I began going to cheder (school) and perhaps even before then, I had a vision of the ultimate Redemption.” From his earliest childhood, and in every successive phase of life, the Rebbe devoted his efforts to creating a spiritual climate that will make Mashiach’s coming a reality.

On a day when “the spiritual source of his soul shines powerfully,” each one of us should think of the way he can help shoulder and advance this mission. The breakthroughs in sciences and communication of our era have created the backdrop for the Redemption. Its is our responsibility to create the conceptual foreground and make the values and principles that will characterize the Redemption factors that influence our lives at present. Anticipating the Redemption in this manner will precipitate its unfolding as actual reality.

It should happen speedily.