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Former IDF Chief: Israel Must Prepare For War

Former IDF Chief of Staff Gabi Ashkenazi warned, Thursday, that Israel could not afford to cut its defense budget and should prepare itself for war.

“In comparison to 10 years ago, the possibility of a conflict is not something that we just need to talk about," Ashkenazi said during a lecture at the Institute for National Security Studies in Tel Aviv.

"I believe Iran would be making a strategic mistake if it blocks the Strait of Hormuz. Another mistake was trying to kill the Saudi ambassador at a restaurant in the US capital. The Iranians are liable to make more mistakes under pressure," he said.

Ashkenazi served as IDF chief of staff from 2007 until 2011 and certainly played a key role in preparing the military for a possible attack against Iran’s nuclear facilities. A 2007 strike against Syria’s nuclear reactor widely ascribed to Israel also happened on his watch.

Mexico Ups Swine Flu Screening As Cases Increase

Three years after swine flu closed Mexico City and caused an international scare, the Mexican government and local media are at odds over the severity of this season's flu virus. Newspapers are warning of an alarming increase in cases while the government insists there is no cause for alarm.

The Mexican health ministry, however, has listed confusing numbers on its website and it hasn't specified the rise in cases despite repeated requests from The Associated Press.

Local media reported a handful of schools in Mexico City have closed. The education ministry said they were private schools shuttered by administrators and parents, not by official government action.

Meanwhile, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Thursday that while Mexico is seeing more cases of the H1N1 virus, the U.S. is seeing more cases of a different strain, H3N2. Antibodies for both are part of this year's flu vaccine. H1N1 is now considered a seasonal flu.

Iran Dispatches Hezbollah Terror Cells To Attack

Iran is taking several steps to help Syria’s beleaguered President Bashar Assad, assassinate opposition figures and attack Israeli and American interests worldwide, sources have confirmed.

After the recent assassination of Iranian nuclear scientist Mostafa Ahmadi-Roshan, deputy director of the first uranium enrichment facility at Natanz, Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, ordered retaliation.

He instructed Gen. Qasem Soleimani, the chief commander of the Quds Forces, to prepare the ground for terrorist attacks, first to retaliate against assassination and espionage within the Iranian nuclear program, and second, to go on the offensive to make the West understand that any military action against Iran will create much instability in the world.

Hezbollah cells, in coordination with the Quds Forces, are to attack U.S. and Israeli interests around the world, even within America itself, the sources said.

The leaders of the Islamic regime in Iran believe that an aggressive terrorist campaign on the world stage along with increased instability in the Strait of Hormuz will send a strong signal to the West to lay off its nuclear weapons program, giving the regime enough time to obtain the bomb and then announce nuclear capability, which they think will checkmate the world.

War Of Attrition Brewing With Iran Over Gulf Oil Routes

Strait of Hormuz

Military tensions in the Persian Gulf shot up again Thursday, Jan. 26, after Dubai police commander Gen. Dhahi Khalfan said on Al Arabiya television that an imminent Gulf war cannot be ruled out and first signs are already apparent. "The world will not let Iran block Hormuz but Tehran can narrow the strait to the maximum," he said.

He echoed DEBKAfile's predictions that Iran will not shut down the Strait of Hormuz completely, but gradually cut down tanker traffic which carries 17 million barrels, or one-fifth of the world's daily consumption, through the waterway. Our Iranian sources report that the rule of thumb Tehran has devised for confront sanctions is to respond to the tightening of an oil embargo by having the Revolutionary Guards gradually narrow the tankers' shipping lanes through the strategic strait. This will progressively cut down the amount of oil reaching the markets.

Tehran will not go all the way and shut the channel down completely for fear of provoking a military showdown with the United States. But each time Washington manages to stop Iran supplying a given country, the IRGC will shut down another section of the strait.

Persian Gulf capitals are talking less these days about an outbreak of armed hostilities over Iran's nuclear program and more about the coming war over the oil shipping routes out to market.

Palestinians Use Nazi "Sieg Heil" Salute During Fatah Celebration In Lebanon

Invoking the salute made notorious by Adolf Hitler and the Third Reich (later adopted by the Islamic militant group Hezbollah), Palestinians used the “Hitlergruß” — or “Hail Hitler!” — salute during Fatah celebrations in Lebanon.

The Yasser Arafat-founded Fatah coins itself a “moderate” party, yet these depictions, along with its documented history advocating anti-Semitism and anti-Semitic violence dictate otherwise.

The footage, provided by MEMRI aired on Palestinian Authority TV on January 24, 2012. Even the music used is evocative of the kind used in Nazi propaganda pieces:

Below are a few articles updating the eligibility of Obama in the state of Georgia. If you haven't followed this evolving story, now may be a good time to start because it isn't going away:

What Happened At Obama-No-Show Trial

Constitutional Expert Says Arguments Over Barack Sr. Strong

Eligibility Attorney Opinion

Georgia Election Official Warns Obama About Failure To Appear