IAEA: Syria site hit by Israel resembled atom plant

 

 

“Confidential UN watchdog report says ’significant’ amounts of uranium particles found by inspectors at Syrian complex bombed by Israel in September 2007, adding further investigation needed to prove reactor allegations “

A Syrian complex bombed by Israel bore features resembling those of an undeclared nuclear reactor and UN inspectors found "significant" traces of uranium at the site, a watchdog report said on Wednesday. But the International Atomic Energy Agency report said the findings gleaned from inspectors’ visit to the site in June were not enough to conclude a reactor was once there. It said further investigation and greater Syrian transparency were needed. The confidential nuclear safeguards report said Syria would be asked to show to inspectors debris and equipment whisked away from the site after the September 2007 Israeli air raid. The United States gave intelligence to the IAEA last April that Washington said indicated the site was a reactor that was close to being built with North Korean assistance and designed to produce plutonium for atomic bombs.

Syria, an ally of Iran whose disputed uranium enrichment program has been under IAEA investigation for years, says the site destroyed was a disused military building and the uranium traces almost certainly came with the munitions used to bomb it. Damascus has dismissed as fabricated the satellite imagery and other intelligence underpinning the investigation. "While it cannot be excluded that the building in question was intended for non-nuclear use, the features of the building, along with the connectivity of the site to adequate pumping capacity of cooling water, are similar to what may be found in connection with a reactor site," said the IAEA report, sent to its 35-nation board of governors ahead of a November 27-28 meeting. “

click for article – http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3625629,00.html

“Veterans Helped by Healing Paws”

 

As an enthusiastic Dog owner and also someone who has the greatest respect for the people of the Armed Services, I found the following article very informative and moving..

Some who have suffered traumatic injuries gain a sense of independence with service dogs, who help provide a bridge back to society.

click for article   Veterans Helped by Healing Paws
By KAREN JONES
Tue, 11 Nov 2008 06:15:28 GMT

Pilot who went blind at 15,000ft lands safely thanks to the RAF

 

A pilot who suddenly went blind at 15,000ft is guided in to land by RAF crews from Linton-on-Ouse in North Yorkshire.

Pilot who went blind at 15,000ft lands safely thanks to the RAF
Fri, 07 Nov 2008 12:14:25 GMT

The creep of authoritarianism in Russia – The Guardian

 

“President Dmitry Medvedev moved yesterday to entrench the current Russian leadership’s grip on power by proposing a presidential term that would extend the stint in office from four to six years. Medvedev said the extension was necessary to guarantee stability and help Russia deal with huge global challenges. But critics said the proposal was further evidence of Russia’s alarming and rapid drift towards authoritarianism. This morning’s Vedomosti newspaper, citing Kremlin sources, said that Medvedev could resign from his post as early as 2009 – paving the way for Vladimir Putin, currently the prime minister, to come back to the Kremlin. Putin stepped down as president in May, when he handed over to Medvedev, his handpicked successor. Under this scenario Putin could get his presidential job back next year and then serve two six-year terms, Vedomosti suggested. In his first state of the nation address yesterday, Medvedev also said he was deploying nuclear missiles in western Russia to "neutralise" the Pentagon’s missile defence system – and lambasted the US for its "arrogant course" and "unilateralism". Speaking hours after Barack Obama was voted in as the next American president, Medvedev said Russia would site short-range Iskander nuclear-capable missiles next door to Poland, in Russia’s Baltic Sea enclave of Kaliningrad.

The Iskander missiles would be targeted at the US’s missile defence and radar bases in Poland and the Czech Republic, Medvedev said. Russia would also install radio-jamming equipment to sabotage the US weapons, he added. The US insists its system is aimed not at Russia but at Iran. Medvedev’s threat – with its echoes of cold war-style confrontation along the frontiers of eastern Europe – is likely to be an early foreign policy headache for Obama, as his fledgling administration seeks to improve ties with the EU. The Democrats are ambivalent about the Bush administration’s expensive defence plans in Europe. But if Obama dumps the project he risks accusations of weakness and caving in to Russian bullying. “

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/nov/06/putin-kremlin-russia