{"id":657,"date":"2015-10-07T05:11:04","date_gmt":"2015-10-07T10:11:04","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.windowview.org\/wpb\/?p=657"},"modified":"2015-10-07T05:11:04","modified_gmt":"2015-10-07T10:11:04","slug":"snapshot-of-the-middle-east-october-6-2015","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.windowview.org\/wpb\/snapshot-of-the-middle-east-october-6-2015\/","title":{"rendered":"Snapshot of the Middle East: October 6, 2015"},"content":{"rendered":"<ul>\n<li>\n<div class=\"articleDate\">\n<div><span class=\"date-display-single\">OCTOBER 6, 2015<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"headline\">\n<div><strong><a href=\"http:\/\/www.timesofisrael.com\/us-denies-ultimatum-over-west-bank-settlements\/\" target=\"[field_internal_link]\">US denies ultimatum over West Bank settlements<\/a><\/strong><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"views-field views-field-field-image\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"views-field views-field-body\">\n<div class=\"field-content\">\n<p>The US State Department denied reports it had issued Israel an ultimatum this week threatening not to veto a UN Security Council resolution declaring West Bank settlements illegal if Israel announced new settlement construction.<\/p>\n<p>Deputy State Department Spokesman Mark Toner said that while his office was aware of such reports in the press, those reports were \u201cfalse.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOur position on settlements is well known and hasn\u2019t changed,\u201d he said. \u201cWe convey it regularly to the Israeli Government. I know we don\u2019t generally comment on private conversations, but I\u2019d like to nip that story in the bud. We haven\u2019t issued any kind of ultimatum on this.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Toner emphasized that far from issuing any such ultimatum regarding a UN resolution, \u201cthere\u2019s not even a resolution out there right now.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div class=\"articleDate\">\n<div><span class=\"date-display-single\">OCTOBER 6, 2015<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"headline\">\n<div><strong><a href=\"http:\/\/www.timesofisrael.com\/ap-reporter-grills-state-department-over-israel-criticism\/\" target=\"[field_internal_link]\">WATCH: AP reporter grills State Department over Israel criticism<\/a><\/strong><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"views-field views-field-field-image\">\u00a0The US government has said that the bombing of the hospital in Kunduz, which killed at least 19 people and wounded dozens more, was a \u201ctragic incident,\u201d but has refrained from condemning the attack as \u201cthe facts are still emerging\u201d and it is still under investigation.<\/div>\n<div class=\"views-field views-field-body\">\n<div class=\"field-content\">\n<p>During the daily press briefing, reporter Matthew Lee recalled that the State Department had issued a \u201cvery, very strong\u201d statement after Israel bombed the UN school in the Gaza Strip, saying, \u201cThe suspicion that militants are operating nearby does not justify strikes that put at risk the lives of so many innocent civilians.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>An Associated Press reporter on Monday grilled a State Department spokesperson over the US\u2019s condemnation of an Israeli strike on a UN-run school in Gaza last summer, contrasting that response to Washington\u2019s failure to condemn its own apparently accidental strike on a Doctors Without Borders hospital in Kunduz, Afghanistan last week.<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"field-content\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div class=\"articleDate\">\n<div>OCTOBER 6, 2015<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"headline\">\n<div><strong><a href=\"http:\/\/www.jpost.com\/Middle-East\/Assad-says-Russian-Iranian-campaign-in-Syria-will-decide-fate-of-Middle-East-419941\" target=\"[field_internal_link]\">Assad says Russian-Iranian campaign in Syria will decide fate of Middle East<\/a><\/strong><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"views-field views-field-field-image\">\n<div class=\"field-content\">President Bashar Assad said a military campaign by Russia, Syria and its allies will decide the fate of the Middle East, and a year of US-led air strikes against Islamic State militants had only helped the spread of terrorism.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"views-field views-field-body\">\n<div class=\"field-content\">\n<p>In an interview with Iranian television broadcast on Sunday, Assad said if Syria, Russia, Iran and Iraq unite in battling terrorism their efforts would yield practical results.<\/p>\n<p>He was speaking days after Russian jets, based in western Syria, launched air strikes against targets Moscow has identified as Islamic State bases, but which Assad&#8217;s opponents say disproportionately hit rival, foreign-backed insurgents.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;The chances of this alliance&#8217;s success are big, not small,&#8221; Assad said, adding that failure would mean &#8220;we face the destruction of the whole region.&#8221;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div class=\"articleDate\">\n<div><span class=\"date-display-single\">OCTOBER 6, 2015<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"headline\">\n<div><strong><a href=\"http:\/\/www.jpost.com\/Middle-East\/ISIS-Threat\/ISIS-vs-al-Qaida-Zawahiri-says-Baghdadi-is-not-the-leader-of-the-Muslim-world-421090\" target=\"[field_internal_link]\">ISIS vs. al-Qaida: Zawahiri says Baghdadi is not the leader of the Muslim world<\/a><\/strong><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"views-field views-field-field-image\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"views-field views-field-body\">\n<div class=\"field-content\">\n<p>A\u00a0month after the leader of al-Qaida said that the Islamic State and its leader are illegitimate, a recording of Ayman Zawihri was released Monday, documenting an even harsher tirade against ISIS and the man who refers to himself as the Caliph of Islam, ISIS chief Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;You spill blood and attack the Muslim people in order to rule,&#8221; Zawihiri said in his fourth recorded lecture released as part of his &#8220;Islamic Spring&#8221; lessons. He added that, &#8220;Baghdadi&#8217;s Caliphate is a Caliphate of explosions, damage and destruction.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>The bulk of the criticism dealt with the manner in which ISIS forces those under its rule to convert to Islam and succumb to the organization&#8217;s rule. &#8220;Pledging allegiance by force, which some spiritual leaders have allowed, is not our way,&#8221; he said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div class=\"articleDate\">\n<div><span class=\"date-display-single\">OCTOBER 6, 2015<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"headline\">\n<div><strong><a href=\"http:\/\/www.breitbart.com\/big-government\/2015\/10\/05\/obamas-new-american-century-arabic-fastest-growing-language-usa\/\" target=\"[field_internal_link]\">New American Century: Arabic Is Fastest-Growing Language In USA<\/a><\/strong><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"views-field views-field-field-image\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"views-field views-field-body\">\n<div class=\"field-content\">\n<p>The Census Bureau\u2019s 2014\u00a0American Community Survey \u00a0(ACS) reveals that Arabic and Urdu \u2013 Pakistan\u2019s national language\u2013 are the fastest-growing foreign languages spoken at home, according to a\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/cis.org\/One-in-Five-US-Residents-Speaks-Foreign-Language-at-Home\" target=\"_blank\">new report<\/a>\u00a0by the Center for Immigration Studies.<\/p>\n<p>After five decades of large-scale immigration,\u00a0a record 63.2 million U.S. residents, or more than one-in-five, speak a language other than English when at home.<\/p>\n<p>Previous\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.breitbart.com\/big-government\/2015\/06\/29\/us-becomes-second-largest-spanish-speaking-country-after-mexico\/\">report<\/a>s\u00a0have shown that the United States is now the second\u00a0largest\u00a0Spanish speaking country in\u00a0the world.\u00a0But the new census study shows that the fastest-growing foreign languages, in percentage terms, are languages spoken by immigrants from Muslim-majority countries.<\/p>\n<p>Between 2010 and 2014, there was a 29 percent increase in Arabic, a 23 percent increase in Urdu, and a 9 percent in Persian, which is spoken in Iran.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div class=\"articleDate\">\n<div><span class=\"date-display-single\">OCTOBER 5, 2015<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"headline\">\n<div><strong><a href=\"http:\/\/freebeacon.com\/national-security\/iran-missiles-pointed-at-u-s-targets\/\" target=\"[field_internal_link]\">Iran: Missiles Pointed at U.S. Targets<\/a><\/strong><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"views-field views-field-field-image\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"views-field views-field-body\">\n<div class=\"field-content\">\n<p>A senior Iranian military leader warned this weekend that \u201call U.S. military bases in the Middle East are within the range of\u201d Iran\u2019s missiles and emphasized that the Islamic Republic will continue to break international bans on the construction of ballistic missiles.<\/p>\n<p>Much of this missile work, like\u00a0the details of Iran\u2019s advanced arsenal, remains secret, according to Brigadier General Amir Ali Hajizadeh, commander of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps Aerospace Force.<\/p>\n<p>Hajizadeh dismissed the threat of military action by the United States, warning that all U.S. assets and allies are in range of Iran\u2019s current missile arsenal,\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/english.farsnews.com\/newstext.aspx?nn=13940712001551\" target=\"_blank\">according<\/a>\u00a0to comments made\u00a0Sunday\u00a0in Tehran and recorded by Iran\u2019s state-controlled Fars News Agency.<\/p>\n<p>The threats of attack on the United States were issued as Iran unveiled new high-tech torpedoes and the formation of a joint war room along with Russia, Syria, and Iraq.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div class=\"articleDate\">\n<div><span class=\"date-display-single\">OCTOBER 5, 2015<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"headline\">\n<div><strong><a href=\"http:\/\/debka.com\/article\/24929\/With-Russia%E2%80%99s-Dep-Army-Chief-due-in-Israel-Moscow-posts-64-S-300-ship-to-air-missiles-off-Syria-N-Israel\" target=\"[field_internal_link]\">With Russia\u2019s Dep. Army Chief due in Israel, Moscow posts 64 S-300 ship-to-air missiles off Syria, N. Israel<\/a><\/strong><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"views-field views-field-field-image\">\n<div class=\"field-content\">\u00a0Russia\u2019s deputy chief of staff, Gen. Nikolay Bogdanovsky, accompanied by a large military delegation, arrives in Israel for a two-day visit on Tuesday, Oct. 6, to discuss increased coordination between the two militaries. However, Moscow seems to be sending Jerusalem an altogether different message: Friday, Oct. 2, the Russian Defense Ministry announced the surprise deployment of Navy cruiser, the\u00a0Moskva, armed with 64 advanced anti-aircraft missiles S-300 ship-to-air missiles opposite the Syrian coastal town of Latakia.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"views-field views-field-body\">\n<div class=\"field-content\">\n<p>DEBKAfile\u2019s military sources point out that Russia, without saying so publicly, has thus created an effective no-fly zone over\u00a0most of Syria, most of northern Israel, including the Golan, as well as southern Turkey, for\u00a0US aircraft based there for air strikes in Syria; Cyprus, the site of British air force bases; and Jordan.<\/p>\n<p>Since 2012, The Obama administration has been discussing the possibility of establishing no-fly zones in northern and southern Syria on a number of occasions, but has shelved the plan whenever a decision was\u00a0imminent. Now, with one move, Moscow has imposed a no-fly zone over Syria.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div class=\"articleDate\">\n<div><span class=\"date-display-single\">OCTOBER 5, 2015<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"headline\">\n<div><strong><a href=\"http:\/\/www.timesofisrael.com\/shin-bet-terror-cell-behind-henkin-murders-arrested\/\" target=\"[field_internal_link]\">5-man Hamas cell that killed Naama and Eitam Henkin arrested<\/a><\/strong><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"views-field views-field-field-image\">\n<div class=\"field-content\">Eitam Henkin and Naama Henkin of Neria, who were murdered in a drive-by terror attack near Nablus on Thursday, October 1, 2015. (screen capture: Channel 2)<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"views-field views-field-body\">\n<div class=\"field-content\">\n<p>Israeli security forces have arrested the Palestinian terror cell that carried out the murders of Naama and Eitam Henkin in the West Bank on Thursday, the Shin Bet security service said Monday evening.<\/p>\n<p>A statement from the Shin Bet said it had carried out the operation in conjunction with the Israel Defense Forces and Israel Police. The suspects had been taken in for questioning by the Shin Bet and had admitted their involvement in the attack, the statement said.<\/p>\n<p>The five cell members are Hamas members from Nablus, the Shin Bet said.<\/p>\n<p>The Israeli couple, both in their 30s, were driving in their car with their four children when they came under attack from Palestinian gunmen. The two were shot dead in front of their children; the children were unharmed.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div class=\"articleDate\">\n<div><span class=\"date-display-single\">OCTOBER 4, 2015<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"headline\">\n<div><strong><a href=\"http:\/\/www.timesofisrael.com\/israeli-planes-hit-gaza-after-rocket-fired-at-south\/\" target=\"[field_internal_link]\">Israeli planes hit Gaza after rocket fired at south<\/a><\/strong><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"views-field views-field-field-image\">\n<div class=\"field-content\">Israeli jets bombed a target in the Gaza Strip early Monday morning after a Palestinian terror group launched a rocket into southern Israel.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"views-field views-field-body\">\n<div class=\"field-content\">\n<p>Palestinian media in Gaza reported Israeli strikes shortly after 2:30 a.m., a matter of hours after a rocket fired from the Gaza Strip Sunday night landed in open territory in the Eshkol Regional Council in southern Israel, causing neither injury or damage.<\/p>\n<p>There were no immediate reports of injuries.<\/p>\n<p>The IDF said in a statement that Israeli aircraft struck \u201ca Hamas terror site in the northern Gaza Strip.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>OCTOBER 6, 2015 US denies ultimatum over West Bank settlements The US State Department denied reports it had issued Israel an ultimatum this week threatening not to veto a UN Security Council resolution declaring West Bank settlements illegal if Israel &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.windowview.org\/wpb\/snapshot-of-the-middle-east-october-6-2015\/\">Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":519,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-657","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p1eQ01-aB","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.windowview.org\/wpb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/657","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.windowview.org\/wpb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.windowview.org\/wpb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.windowview.org\/wpb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/519"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.windowview.org\/wpb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=657"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.windowview.org\/wpb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/657\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3793,"href":"https:\/\/www.windowview.org\/wpb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/657\/revisions\/3793"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.windowview.org\/wpb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=657"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.windowview.org\/wpb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=657"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.windowview.org\/wpb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=657"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}