Aipac update

www.aipac.org September 17, 2008
Iran Expands Nuclear Program as IAEA Declares "Dead End"
Nasrallah: "No Peace in Mideast if Israel Exists"
Treasury Slaps Sanctions on Iranian Shipping Company
United States Approves $330 Million in Arms Deals for Israel
Ahmadinejad: Iran Will Support Hamas Until Israel's Collapse
Israel Hosts Seminar on Women in the Military

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Iran Expands Nuclear Program as IAEA Declares "Dead End"
As Iran rapidly expands its illicit nuclear program, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) on Monday declared that it had reached a "dead end" in its year-long effort to get Tehran to clarify whether it covertly researched the development of an atomic bomb, The Financial Times reported. The U.N. nuclear watchdog said it had been unable to make "any substantive progress" in its attempt to get Iran to answer allegations that there may have been a military dimension to its nuclear program. In addition, the IAEA on Tuesday showed documents and photographs that suggested Iran secretly tried to modify a missile cone to fit a nuclear bomb, according to diplomats close to the issue. Click here to learn more about the need for tougher international sanctions against the Islamic Republic.
Nasrallah: "No Peace in Mideast if Israel Exists"
Hizballah leader Hassan Nasrallah said Thursday that Mideast peace would not be possible so long as Israel exists, The Jerusalem Post reported. "As long as Israel exists and its eyes are honing in on the territories of other states, the world will not know peace in the Middle East," Nasrallah said during an interview. "Our situation is stronger than it has ever been - from the logistical point of view, militarily, and in numbers. Lebanon as a whole is united against one enemy: Israel." Hizballah has tripled the size and scope of its rocket arsenal in the two years since its war against Israel, in direct contravention of U.N. Security Council Resolution 1701, which called for the terrorist army's disarmament. Click here to learn more about the threat of Hizballah.
Treasury Slaps Sanctions on Iranian Shipping Company
The United States imposed new sanctions against Iran's national maritime carrier, IRISL, and 18 affiliates on Wednesday, targeting much of the country's shipping sector and increasing the pressure on the Islamic Republic over its illicit nuclear program, Reuters reported. "Not only does IRISL facilitate the transfer of cargo for U.N.-designated proliferators, it also falsifies documents and uses deceptive schemes to shroud its involvement in illicit commerce," Stuart Levey, Treasury's under secretary for terrorism and financial intelligence, said in a statement. Iran faces heightened economic pressure over its continued defiance of international demands that it suspend its atomic work.
United States Approves $330 Million in Arms Deals for Israel
The U.S. government last week announced $330 million in separate arms deals for Israel, Reuters reported. In addition, sources tracking a much bigger deal for two-dozen F-35 fighter jets said that agreement could be finalized later this month. The three deals include upgrades for Israel's Patriot missile defense system, anti-armor weapons and thousands of training rockets, smart bombs and other equipment. The announcement coincided with a three-day U.S.-Israeli forum aimed at expanding secure high technology trade and investment, the most senior bilateral high technology dialogue ever carried out between the two allies. The U.S.-Israel relationship remains more critical than ever as the two nations face an unprecedented array of shared threats. Click here to learn more about the importance of American aid to Israel.
Ahmadinejad: Iran Will Support Hamas Until Israel's Collapse
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad vowed Friday to keep supporting the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas until the "collapse of Israel," Germany's Deutsche Press Agentur reported. The Iranian news agency Khabar quoted Ahmadinejad as telling Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh that Iran views the support of the Palestinian people as part of its religious and national duty and that the Islamic Republic will stand behind the Palestinian nation "until the big victory feast, which is the collapse of the Zionist regime." Iran has consistently refused to recognize the legitimacy of a Jewish state in the Middle East and is the prime sponsor of Hamas and Hizballah—terrorist groups sworn to Israel's destruction.
Israel Hosts Seminar on Women in the Military
The IDF Chief of Staff Adviser for Women Affairs, Brig. Gen. Yehudit Grisaro, welcomed 11 European and American representatives for a seminar on women in the military. The conference emphasized the significance of integrated women's service in militaries across the world, and provided a forum to share the IDF's experience. After 60 years of female integration, the IDF serves as an example to international armed forces of equal opportunity in a military environment. The IDF opens its doors to the young women of Israel to serve in a large variety of positions, such as pilots, naval officers, infantry soldiers and much more.