During the summit, Mad Mahmoud called for a Middle East without Zionists (and let us not pretend that when he says Zionists, he doesn’t mean Jews).

In the meantime, Israelis are being mailed new gas masks in case the Axis chooses to use the chemical weapons they’ve been stockpiling. The IDF completed exercises for a two-front war (you may even count on three if the West Bank Palestinians jump in).

As for the rest of the world? Well, the UN General Assembly passed another resolution insisting that Israel respond to the Goldstone report with an “independent” investigation. Australia is so mad that forged passports were used in the Dubai hit that it deliberately didn’t vote against the resolution this time and warned that Israel’s ties with Australia are at risk. (It’s good to know that Australia has its priorities straight.) Spanish schoolteachers are indoctrinating their students with so much hatred for Israel that the Madrid embassy is receiving letters that say “How many Palestinian children have you murdered today?” And the EU released a letter condemning the Dubai hit without mentioning Israel by name, apparently after the heads of European intelligence got through to the political leadership that they are going to badly damage intelligence operations throughout the world if they don’t STFU about Dubai (can’t remember my source on this; link welcome if you read it, too).

Now we read that Hillary Clinton is telling Lebanon that there’s no way the U.S. could stop an Israeli strike on Lebanon if they continue to allow Hezbullah to arm itself. I do believe that the UN Security Council passed a binding resolution (1701) forbidding exactly that. Perhaps she might have mentioned that as the reason for Hezbullah to stop arming itself, instead of using the “I can’t control my crazy friend here” argument. But that would be asking for logic and fairness concerning Israel, which is utterly ridiculous.

Israel’s Axis of Evil continues its mission, unfettered by world opinion, and not impressed by the Obama administration. What could possibly go wrong?

The exercise of talking to Mr. Assad serves a certain purpose, since it allows a skilled diplomat such as Mr. Burns to lay out the administration’s incentives for changed behavior as well as its red lines, and it might make Iran’s paranoid leaders nervous. But anyone who thinks the Obama administration has come up with a way to change the Middle East through detente with Syria would do well to study the history of Mr. Assad’s decade in power. That gambit has been tried, by more Western diplomats and politicians than can be counted, and the results are clear: It doesn’t work.

(In addition, as Barry Rubin pointed out, the timing of the appointment couldn’t have been worse.)

Tony Badran expanded on the Post’s view.

The administration is setting a perfect trap for itself by giving Syria the time and space to pursue its actions without American benchmarks to verify if engagement is working. This will be exploited to the fullest by Assad. The US would do well to abandon the ill-advised “short term vs. long term” approach that allows Syria to obtain rewards for minor concessions while allowing its regime to pursue a policy of destabilization.

Further complicating matters, the administration’s outreach couldn’t have had worse optics. While Burns was visiting Syria, the International Atomic Energy Agency confirmed that Syria was developing a covert nuclear program with North Korean help. This came a few days after a report disclosed that North Korea and Syria had resumed cooperation on “sensitive military technology” in violation of UN Security Council resolutions. In a sign of what’s in store for the Obama administration, Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Mouallem declared that Damascus would continue to ignore IAEA calls for cooperation.

Syria responded to the outreach by threatening Israel and inviting Iran’s President Ahmadinejad for a visit.

The visit went about as can be expected:

Arab nations will usher in a new Middle East “without Zionists and without colonialists,” Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Thursday.

Ahmadinejad spoke Thursday during a trip to Syria. The trip follows a string of US efforts to break up Syria’s 30-year alliance with Tehran.

Or to get a sense of the non-filtered chatter:

President al-Assad went on to say, ”We are meeting today to communicate and hold dialogue on various issues and thorny and complicated topics in this region…such a meeting not only comes in the course of years-long regular and routine meetings between the two countries, but it also coincides with this noble occasion adding special meanings…This is a blessed occasion to which we sought to add the bless of work and communication,”

”We wanted this festive day to be one of accomplishment, so we signed an agreement on annulling entry visas between Syria and Iran…This agreement would result in more communication and enhancing of the common interests of the Syrian and Iranian peoples,” President al-Assad said.

It sure sounds as if Syria is drawing closer to Iran, not dropping out of orbit.

Crossposted on Soccer Dad.

Profits trump politics: The Palestinians are upset with the French because two French companies are building the light rail system that runs from Jerusalem to outlying suburbs like Pisgat Ze’ev. They want the French government to pressure the companies to stop the rail line. Sure, because the French aren’t, say, trading with Iran or anything like that. Hey, good luck with that hissy fit, Palestinians. I’m sure it will all work out just swell.

We really, really really mean it this time! Following Obama’s toothless statement that Iran is increasingly isolated, Hillary Clinton stated even more forcefully that the U.S. is going to “apply greater pressure.” Wow. I can’t wait to see what happens after those two remarks! Iran must really be scared now!

And the Church wonders why its relations with Jews suck: A Vatican guide to discussions for an upcoming conference blames Jews for Muslims driving Christians out of the Middle East. Of course it’s our fault. We also poisoned the wells in the Middle Ages, caused the Black Plague, and I’m pretty sure something we did caused the earthquake in Haiti. Also, I’m really, really, really sorry, Bostonians, but I think we’re also responsible for the Bill Buckner misplay in the 1986 World Series.

Sending in the clown: George Mitchell says that Lebanon and Syria are the keys to Middle East peace. Say, what do both of those countries have in common? (Hint: It starts with Ir and ends with anian sponsorship). Good to know Obama’s crack Middle East specialists are on the case. We can expect peace to break out anytime this millennia.

Perhaps you would like me to come in there and wash your **** for you? The Palestinians have a great new plan for negotiations with Israel. They want us to do it for them. You can stop laughing now. (A Yo-Prize to the first person who correctly names the movie the quote is from.)

When is a precondition not a precondition? When the Palestinians say it isn’t. Abbas says he’s not insisting on preconditions, but he won’t talk peace until there’s a complete freeze on “settlements.” Uh-huh. Say, if I say a piece of green paper is a twenty dollar bill, think I can convince a cashier to take it?

I hate British Nazis: Apparently, the theft of the Auschwitz sign was done at the behest of a British neo-Nazi. The proceeds of the sale were to go to neo-Nazi hate attacks in Sweden. Boy, was I wrong in thinking it was just really stupid thieves. It was really stupid British Jew-haters.

Occupation isn’t occupation when Arabs are doing the occupying: The Dead Sea Scrolls, clearly artifacts of Israel’s Jewish heritage, were recovered from Jordan’s grasp in the Six-Day War. They are currently on display in Canada. Jordan wants Canada to seize them under the Hague Convention, insisting that Israel should hand back the “cultural artifacts” because it is occupying east Jerusalem, and an occupier is not allowed to steal the cultural artifacts of the occupied. This begs the question: When Jordan was occupying the West Bank and took the rest of the scrolls, was it not doing exactly what it now accuses Israel of doing? Of course it was. This is yet another example of the famed projection of Arab nations on Israeli behavior. Read the article in full to see the utter hypocrisy of the PA and Jordan regarding these scrolls of the Torah, a book which the Arabs utterly disdain.

Ew! Jew cooties! An Iranian soccer official resigned because someone in his office sent new year’s greetings to Israel. But it’s not anti-Semitism, it’s anti-Zionism.

The UN website is concentrating on Gaza. And Gaza. And Gaza. And Gaza. Four news releases in the last week on Gaza. How many on Iran? You’re kidding, right? Because the last one was over a month ago, and it was about Iran’s nuclear violations.

To its credit, Amnesty International is calling on Iran to stop killing its protestors. In fact, Amnesty has several calls for Iran to stop abusing its own people.

UN SecGen Ban Ki-Moon is “deeply concerned” about Gaza, but is apparently quite unconcerned about Iran, as there is no statement whatsoever regarding the current uprising. As for the worldwide protests agaist Iran cracking down on its populace’s human rights, well—there are none. Crickets, and all that.

Remember this, the next time you read about the worldwide outrage over human rights in the occupied territories. Not that I expect anything to change. But we do get to point out that there is a double standard in the world regarding Israel, and the rest of the world. But not to worry, as I also always point out: It only happens on days that end with a “y.”

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, headed by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Avigdor Liberman, will host a conference next week (27-31 December) for Israeli Heads of Missions. At the conference, Israel’s ambassadors and consuls general serving throughout the world will discuss broad diplomatic and strategic issues.

This is the first time a conference for all of Israel’s Heads of Missions has been held. The idea is to facilitate direct dialogue with the country’s leaders, mutual updates on major diplomatic issues, and a discussion of action plans to deal with the challenges awaiting the State of Israel in the international arena in the coming year, including the Iranian threat.

My take: It is to unify the message that Israel wants out there. Benjamin Netanyahu is the most PR-savvy Prime Minister Israel has had since Golda Meir.

Watch for the ambassadors to come back with a unified message on Israeli issues.

As for an attack on Iran: Seriously? Do you really think that Israel would recall all of her ambassadors on the eve of an attack on Iran and tell them it was going to happen? Because, gee, that’s the first thing I’d do if I were going to launch a surprise attack—tell a whole lot more people about it so they can leak it to the press.

But—but—Israel doesn’t care about America’s interests! Funny, but if that were true, then why is Israel trying to convince India to buy American F-16s instead of Swedish fighter jets? Could it be that Israel is one of America’s strongest allies? Naaaah. The Zionists control the world. There must be an ulterior motive.

Gee, I wonder how that happened? A German government committee on anti-Semitism doesn’t want to work with Holocaust survivors because they’re not “objective” and are too “emotional” about anti-Semitism. Huh. Go figure. The survivors of the German attempt to murder every single Jew in existence might be a bit emotional about Jew hatred. I’m not getting the connection. Oh, and the commission is blaming “lobby groups” for the brouhaha. Whomever could they mean by “lobby” groups?

Well, of course they’ll attack Israel: The UN climate conference in Copenhagen will most likely be indulging in a ritual Israel-bashing before the conference is over. I know, I know, you’re all shocked to hear that a UN-sponsored event will be singling out Israel for attack. Because it’s not like that’s ever happened before. Only on the ones that occur on days that end in “y.”

Ahmatotalwacko: Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the crazy president of the land of Mad Mullahs, says he has proof that the U.S. is trying to keep the Madhi from peeking up out of his well. Really, you can’t make this shit up. It astonishes me that anyone takes these people seriously with fruit loops like him and Muammar Gaddafi in charge. And yet, they do. (Psst… dude… I thought you said it was the Jews Zionists trying to destroy Iran.)

Iranian protesters overwhelmed by stories about Copenhagen: Tens of thousands of Iranians are protesting all over the country, facing the police, gas, beatings, and bullets again, and what is the world focused on? Twenty thousand people converging on Copenhagen for the latest act in Global Warming Theatre. Obama is cuddling up with Al Gore, who canceled a huge shindig at the conference for no apparent reason (*cough* *cough* CLIMATEGATE). Yeah, that’s about what you’d expect from him on the Iranian revolution that we should be helping.

Ahmadinejad’s good relations with Venezuela’s openly anti-American regime are well-known. As well as President Hugo Chavez, the Iranian leader has already nurtured relations with Nicaragua’s President Daniel Ortega and Ecuadorean President Rafael Correa. But this is the first time an Iranian leader has visited Brazil, a country with major international aspirations.

The one-day visit is the first leg of a Latin American and African tour that will also take in Venezuela, Bolivia, Gambia and Senegal, and is being seen as part of a concerted Iranian campaign to win influence in parts of the western hemisphere.

And it’s working.

Iran’s leader got a welcoming bear hug from the Brazilian president, who urged Western nations to drop threats of punishment over the Iranian nuclear program and instead negotiate a fair solution.

Hezbullah cells are well ensconced in South America—with America’s enemies, of course.

The commander of U.S. forces in Latin America says the Iranian-backed Lebanese militant group Hezbollah is involved in drug trafficking in Colombia. The admiral is worried about increased Iranian and Hezbollah activities throughout the region.

Meanwhile, back at home, the Iranian leadership is making sure of two things. First, that the opposition is decapitated.

A former Iranian Vice-President and leading reformist has been sentenced to six years in prison for fomenting unrest after President Ahmadinejad’s disputed re-election in June.

Mohammad Ali Abtahi, who “confessed” to his alleged crimes at a trial widely denounced as a charade, is the most senior of hundreds of dissidents who have been locked up over the past five months.

Next, setting up education camps for the young, controlling communications, and effectively creating a police state (though the scaries element has to be the Basij centers in elementary schools).

In recent weeks, the government has announced a variety of new ideological offensives.

It is implanting 6,000 Basij militia centers in elementary schools across Iran to promote the ideals of the Islamic Revolution, and it has created a new police unit to sweep the Internet for dissident voices. A company affiliated with the Revolutionary Guards acquired a majority share in the nation’s telecommunications monopoly this year, giving the Guards de facto control of Iran’s land lines, Internet providers and two cellphone companies. And in the spring, the Revolutionary Guards plan to open a news agency with print, photo and television elements.

These actions, and Iran’s other aggressive actions, are triggering an arms race in the Persian Gulf.

Saudi Arabia, long the major arms-buyer in the region, is now being overtaken by relative minnows such as the United Arab Emirates as they share their neighbour’s fear of the growing military strength of their Shia neighbour.

And of course, the specter of a nuclear-armed Iran haunts Israel as well as the Arab nations.

Most Israelis believe the key to enduring peace in the Middle East is convincing Israel’s adversaries that ejecting Israel through force is an impossible task not worth pursuing. As the Palestinian-American political scientist Hilal Khashan’s work on Arab attitudes toward peace has shown, the willingness of Arabs to make peace with Israel is a direct function of their perception of Israel’s invincibility. The Iranian nuclear program threatens this perception.

An additional threat posed by Iran’s nuclear program is its potential to unleash a cascade of proliferation in the Middle East, beginning with Egypt and Saudi Arabia. The development of nuclear weapons by these countries would pose a grave danger to the Jewish state, despite the fact that Egypt has signed a peace treaty with Israel. This is because leaders who have reconciled themselves to Israel’s existence have done so because they believed Israel was strong but unlikely to endure in the long term.

Just as an Iranian nuclear capability would imply a nuclear guarantee for anti-Zionist proxies, an Egyptian or Saudi nuclear capability would reduce incentives for other Arab states to make peace with Israel because, shielded under an Arab nuclear umbrella, they would no longer fear catastrophic defeat or further loss of territory.

So what can we do to stop Iran’s aggression? Well, the opposition is reaching out to the United States.

After more than five months of going it alone, Iran’s opposition Green Movement is reaching out to the United States for help. Via public and private channels, the Obama Administration has received several appeals in recent weeks to take a stronger stand against human-rights abuses in Iran, avoid military action and impose more aggressive and rapid-fire sanctions against the Revolutionary Guards and its vast business interests.

It’s time for President Obama to stop tsk-tsking about Iran’s behavior, and begin actively supporting the Iranian opposition. Iran’s aims are to become a regional hegemon, to spread its Islamism over the world, and to subjugate any and all who seek something different for Iran. The Iranian aims are quite clear. While it may be an exaggeration to say they want world domination, at least for now, it is their ultimate goal. The United Nations might want to take a look at the elephant in the room for a change, instead of focusing so strongly on Israel. Israel does not seek world domination, and not even hegemony in the Middle East. You cannot say the same for Iran, which is currently arming the Yemeni opposition, trying to build nuclear weapons plants in Syria, controlling Lebanon through Hizbullah, working for the destruction of Israel, setting up Hezbullah cells in South America, and fomenting unrest wherever and whenever it benefits Iran.

Sanctions should be the least of our actions.

It’s the baby milk factory excuse: Oh, Iran needs enriched uranium for hospitals. So that must be why they keep on putting new nuke plants inside mountains, to make sure that the purity levels get to the right percentage. At least, that’s their story and they’re sticking to it. I just love the way Reuters and the AP are eating this bullshit up with a spoon and passing it along.

Translating Hamas’ rocket deal: You have to read between the lines in Hamas’ announcement that they’ve stopped “militant groups” from firing rockets into Israel. Here’s what they’re really saying: We’ll only fire rockets at you if you kill our terrorists in Gaza who are trying to kill you from inside Gaza. But it’s probably moot. Elder says the terrorists are denying an agreement was made. And oops, the IAF hit Gaza after the so-called agreement was announced. Strike three.

Mubarak’s sense of humor: The Egyptian president is a stand-up comic, and he doesn’t even know it. He says “Israel will anger all Muslims if it does not resolve Jerusalem’s disputed status.” And this differs from Israel angering all Muslims for merely existing, how?