E alert

Prepared for the
Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations
by the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs
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DAILY ALERT Thursday,
July 31, 2008


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In-Depth Issues:


U.S. Official: Iraqis Told Me WMDs Sent to Syria - Ryan Mauro (WorldNetDaily)
Don Bordenkircher, who served two years as national director of prison and jail operations in Iraq, said that about 40 prisoners he spoke with "boasted of being involved in the transport of WMD warheads to Syria" in the three months prior to Operation Iraqi Freedom.
He said he was told the WMDs were shipped by truck into Syria, and some ended up in Lebanon's Bekaa Valley.
Prisoners who said they worked at the al-Muthana Chemical Industries site said the cargo included nitrogen mustard gas warheads for Tariq I and II missiles.



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Syria Tries Dissidents Over Call for Democracy (AFP)
Twelve Syrian dissidents went on trial in Damascus on Wednesday for signing a declaration calling for democracy in the biggest collective trial of dissidents since 2001.
They were charged with "spreading false information which weakens the morale of the nation and national sentiment, joining a secret organization with the aim of modifying the nation's political and economic status, inciting racial and sectarian dissent and harming the state."



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Al-Qaeda's Sinister Creep into North Africa - Amir Taheri (Times-UK)
Since the tide of the war turned last winter, thousands of al-Qaeda jihadists have fled Iraq.
Some returned home and resumed normal life. Others ended up in Yemen, Afghanistan, Pakistan, India and Thailand to help reignite the fires of jihad.
However, North Africa appears to have attracted the largest number of returnees.
A new arc of terror is taking shape in Libya, Tunisia, Algeria, Morocco and Mauritania - the five countries of the so-called Arab Maghreb in North Africa.



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Roadside Bomb Wounds Fatah Commander in Lebanon - Hussein Dakroub (AP/Washington Post)
A roadside bomb in Lebanon Tuesday critically wounded Talal Sleim, a Fatah military commander, setting off gunbattles at Ein el-Hilweh, where Fatah guerrillas exchanged machine-gun fire with Palestinian gunmen of the Jund al-Sham group, which follows the extremist ideology of al-Qaeda.



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Anti-Semitic Incidents in UK Rise 9% (BBC News)
There were 266 anti-Semitic incidents in the UK in the first half of 2008, compared with 244 in the same period last year, a 9% rise, according to the Community Security Trust (CST).
Incidents involving Jewish students or academics and at colleges rose 88%, from 26 to 49.
"Every anti-Semitic attack is a blight on society," said MP John Mann, chair of the parliamentary group against anti-Semitism.




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Israeli Prime Minister Olmert Declares Intent to Resign in September - Isabel Kershner
Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert announced on Wednesday that he would resign after his Kadima party chose a new leader in September elections. The leadership race has been set for Sept. 17, with a runoff, if necessary, on Sept. 24. The main contenders are Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni and Transportation Minister Shaul Mofaz, a former defense minister. (New York Times)
See also Olmert to Continue Serving as Prime Minister Until New Government Formed - Shmuel Tal
The person who is elected to head Kadima will be asked to form a government and until he succeeds in doing it, Olmert will continue to serve as prime minister. If the new chairman of Kadima fails to form a government, Olmert will serve as prime minister until after the coming general elections. (Israel Radio/IMRA)
See also Text of Prime