Obama Attempting To Mend Fences With Israel – OpEd

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As more and more world leaders accept the premise of a nuclear-armed Iran, President Barack Obama’s White House is “killing two birds with one stone,” said a former intelligence officer. “He’s rattling his saber for the benefit of Iran, while at the same time attempting to show Jewish voters that he’s not anti-Israel by announcing a joint military operation with the Jewish State.”

Prior to the Obama Administration, many U.S. police and law enforcement officers had undergone special training in counterterrorism and public safety in Israel.

Several officers who visited Israel for training have told the Law Enforcement Examiner that there are two places where excellent training in counterterrorism and counterinsurgency is routine: In Britain, due to its experience with the IRA (Irish Republican Army) and other militant groups; and in Israel, which has been fighting for survival since its Independence in 1948.

With Obama getting low-marks from Jews in Israel and in the United States, the Obama State Department announced that Israel and the United States will conduct the largest-ever joint military exercise. There’s even talk of resuming U.S. police officer training in Israel.

The stated purpose of exercise is the testing of U.S. and Israel’s defenses against ballistic missiles, but the hidden agenda, according to the intelligence source, is to have the military exercise as close to the 2012 election as possible so that the failing U.S. President may reclaim the Jewish vote.

“The anti-Netanyahu comments by Obama in his conversation with France’s President Nicholas Sarkozy more evidence of President Obama’s disdain for Israel’s career warrior and statesman,” said former military intelligence officer and police detective Mike Snopes.

“Perhaps this military exercise will help to repair some of the damage to the two leaders’ relationship. But I doubt it. Netanyahu’s background is that of a warrior. Obama’s is that of a ‘community organizer,'” Snopes explained.

In a story on Front Page Magazine, Joseph Klein wrote about the strained relationship between Obama and the Israeli government that sheds light on what Obama really thinks. “This is a president who has gone out of his way to visit Muslim countries in the same region as Israel, but has yet to visit Israel itself since taking office. Obama had no trouble bowing to the Saudi king, while insulting the Israeli prime minister at every turn,” wrote Klein who was later quoted by Accuracy in Media.

Meanwhile, the U.S.-Israeli drill is scheduled to take place in late 2012, and will simulate Israel’s ballistic missile defense in action. “It will be the largest and most significant joint exercise in the allies’ history,” Andrew Shapiro, U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Political-Military Affairs, said at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy.

Shapiro said that joint exercise will allow the U.S. military “to learn from Israel’s experience in urban warfare and counterterrorism.”

Originally the maneuvers were planned for the spring but were postponed until later in 2012.

According to the White House, about 5,000 Israeli and U.S. troops are due to participate in the maneuvers, in which the Israel Air Force will test a full gamut of aerial-defense systems, including Iron Dome — a system that has already successfully shot down short-range rockets fired by Gaza militants; the upgraded version of the U.S.-made Patriot for intercepting hostile aircraft; Magic Wand — a system designated to counter medium-range rockets; and Arrow 3 — a system still under development for intercepting ballistic missiles high in the atmosphere.

Meanwhile, the Americans will bring along THAAD (Terminal High Altitude Area Defense) system — a key element of the nation’s Ballistic Missile Defense System and aimed at intercepting missiles in the final stage of their trajectory. Its high-altitude capabilities are designed to complement the lower-altitude mission of the Patriot anti-missile system, according to missile defense experts.

News of the joint drill came amid recent local media reports that Israel is planning to strike Iran’s nuclear facilities in the near future. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Ehud Barak were reportedly seeking to secure cabinet majority for such an attack, sparking the ire of senior U.S. government officials who accused the media of causing “tremendous damage.”

Jim Kouri

Jim Kouri, CPP, formerly Fifth Vice-President, is currently a Board Member of the National Association of Chiefs of Police, an editor for ConservativeBase.com, and he's a columnist for Examiner.com. In addition, he's a blogger for the Cheyenne, Wyoming Fox News Radio affiliate KGAB (www.kgab.com). Kouri also serves as political advisor for Emmy and Golden Globe winning actor Michael Moriarty.

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