PB -Un "think tank" occidental, cristiano e independiente

War games on two fronts Israel's plans to prevent a nuclear Iran remain opaque, but Syria's attacks on the rebel city of Homs have sent a clear message to the world. By  Avi Issacharoff and  Amos Harel Now we have seen evidence of the catastrophe unfolding in Syria and considered the scenarios of future terror in Iran, other recent stories - fascinating as they may be - seem less significant. The bloodbath at the soccer game in the Egyptian city of Port Said has been forgotten as if it never happened (74 people died during the disturbance ). And the declaration of the establishment of a joint Palestinian government is barely a blip on the radar - even the Netanyahu government found only a minute or two to condemn the Palestinian Authority's capitulation to Hamas before returning to its threat of military action against Iran. In these two arenas, Israel faces probable imminent danger. The Iranian nuclear program is liable to reach fruition before t

Haaretz exclusive: Syria documents show Iran helping Assad to sidestep sanctions Documents leaked following cyber-attack by hacker group Anonymous, show Tehran has given Assad more than $1b in effort to overcome oil embargo. By  Barak Ravid Iran has been helping Syria bypass the international sanctions imposed on it for massacring civilians, according to documents from the Syrian president's office obtained by Haaretz. Haaretz exclusive: Syria documents show Iran helping Assad to sidestep sanctions Documents leaked following cyber-attack by hacker group Anonymous, show Tehran has given Assad more than $1b in effort to overcome oil embargo. By  Avi Issacharoff and  Amos Harel The documents show that Iran has given the Syrian regime more than $1 billion, which would help it overcome the oil embargo and other moves including restrictions on flights and sanctions against the central bank. Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and his Syrian cou

Falklands oilfields could yield $176bn tax windfall The Falkland Islands stand to benefit from an enormous $176bn (£111.7bn) tax windfall from oil and gas exploration, according to a major new report. A report predicts the potential tax riches for Falklands Islands oilfields are likely to reach just shy of $180bn.   By  Nathalie Thomas 9:30PM GMT 11 Feb 2012 265 Comments A study to be handed to the UK Government this week will lay bare the potential riches on offer from drilling in waters within the 200-mile exclusion zone set up during the 1980s Falklands War to mark the boundaries of British territory. A group of UK-listed companies is involved in exploring four major prospects this year, with the largest, Loligo, potentially holding more than 4.7bn barrels of oil. By comparison Catcher, the biggest discovery in the North Sea of the past 11 years, is believed to hold only 300m barrels. The report by oil and gas analysts at Edison Invest

Leon Panetta 'believes Israel could attack Iran in the spring' US Defense Secretary Leon Panetta believes there is a "strong possibility" that Israel will strike Iran's nuclear installations this spring, it was reported today. A  column in the Washington Post newspaper  claimed the Pentagon chief believes that a  Israeli  strike could go ahead within months. When asked about the opinion piece by reporters travelling with him to a Nato meeting in Brussels, Mr Panetta did not deny the claim. "I'm not going to comment on that. David Ignatius can write what he will but with regards with what I think and what I view, I consider that to be an area that belongs to me and nobody  else," he said. "Israel indicated they're considering this (a strike), we've indicated our concerns," he added. The Post columnist said Mr Panetta "believes there is a strong likelihood that Isr