DOCUMENTS IN THE NEWS - 2006
Foreign Governments

Iran's Weapons of Mass Destruction

• Articles
  • The Coming Wars: What the Pentagon Can Now Do in Secret (New Yorker)
    • Article by Seymour Hersh for the January 24, 2005 issue
    • White House conducted intelligence on Iran's nuclear program using the Pentagon (which can avoid Congress) v. the CIA (which reports to Congress)
    • Pentagon is preparing invasion plans if European negotiations to reduce Iran's nuclear arsenal fail
• Implementation of the NPT Safeguards Agreement in the Islamic Republic of Iran (IAEA)
  • Mohamed ElBaradei, head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, reported to the UN Security Council on April 28, 2006 that Iran had refused to cooperate with IAEA inspections on its nuclear program
  • As of May 3, 2006 the report was still classified, although excerpts appear on the BBC web site
• Ahmadi-Nejad's Letter to President Bush
  • Lengthy letter dated May 8, 2006
  • Challenges U.S. policy based on Christian and Islamic principles
  • Written just before a UN Security Council debate on Iran's nuclear weapons program
  • Another Copy
• President of Iran
  • Includes English translations of speeches on foreign and domestic matters

Israel-Hezbollah/Lebanon War

• News Coverage
  • Al-Jazeerah
    • English version of Al-Jazeerah news
    • Numerous articles on conflict during July 2006
  • Israel-Lebanon Conflict (Wikipedia)
    • Extensive coverage and instant updates of the war
    • Includes news, international opinion, casualties on both sides, pictures of participants
    • Includes links to a timeline of the Arab-Israeli Conflict with biographies of key players and the text of peace agreements
  • Jerusalem Post
    • Latest Israeli news stories in English
  • Jordan Times
    • Last week of Middle East News in English
  • Lexis-Nexis Academic (UMich Only)
    • Use guided news search for the text of major world newspapers in English extending as far back as 1980
  • Middle East Crisis (BBC)
    • Web site covers Israeli-Palestinian Conflict since 2001 but includes good coverage of the Israel-Hezbollah War
    • Timeline combines text with video coverage
    • Maps of the latest fighting, biographies of the primary officials, historic documents
  • World News Connection (UMich Only)
    • Daily translations of the foreign press into English
    • Use the Advanced Search to narrow press releases from a region
    • Translations go back to 1996

• Analysis
  • Is this Armageddon? World War III? How can a permanent ceasefire be established?
  • Interesting analyses in real time come from television news transcripts
    • See LEXIS-NEXIS Academic (UMich Only)
    • Use Guided News Search/News Transcripts/All Transcripts and (armageddon or world war III) and israel and (lebanon or hezbollah)
    • You can use the same source for Tim Russert's interview with Tom Friedman on Meet the Press, July 30, 2006

• Hezbollah
  • Hezbollah (Wikipedia)
    • History of Hezbollah and numerous links to biographies and pictures of key players
  • Hezbollah does not have an active web site accessible in the United States. Archived Web Site from December 2003 has speeches of Hassan Nasrallah

• Iran
  • Iran Ministry of Foreign Affairs
    • Latest statements about the Lebanon crisis (July 26, 2006)
    • Some foreign policy information
  • Iranian Embassy in Ottawa
    • Extensive information on the culture of Iran
    • Links to English newspapers in Iran, which cover the conflict

• Israel
  • Israeli Defense Forces
    • Summary of action in Souther Lebanon and casualties as of July 26, 2006
  • Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs
    • Current press releases on the war
    • Terror from Hezbollah has news releases and statistics on Hezbollah attacks and the Israel response since 1996

• Lebanon
  • Lebanese Elections
    • LibanVote
      • Parliamentary election winners by district and party, 1927-2000
    • 2005 Parliamentary Elections (Wikipedia)
      • Votes for religious groups and votes by party, including Hezbollah
  • Lebanese Embassy in Washington, D.C.
    • Official government statements on the conflict as of July 26, 2006
    • Pictures of the destruction
    • Save the Lebanese civilians petition

• Maps
  • Historical Maps of the Middle East
    • Maps of cities in the Middle East primarily from the 19th and early 20th Centuries
    • Some maps go back thousands of years
  • Mid East Web Maps
    • Maps of the Middle East since the time of Joshua
    • Emphasis on 19th-21st Century

• Multilateral Peace Efforts
  • Rome Conference of Ministers (July 26, 2006)
    • Transcript of statements by Kofi Annan (UN), Condoleeza Rice (US) and Prime Minister Sinora
    • Conference agreed to humanitarian aid for Lebanon but not on an immediate ceasefire

• Qana Bombing
  • Israel bombed a shelter in Qana on July 30, 2006 with a death rate of 58 civilians, over half children
  • Pictures of Qana Bombing (From Israel to Lebanon)
  • Security Council Expresses "Shock and Distress" at Israeli Bombing at Qana">
    • Statement by UN Security Council at a special session on July 30, 2006
  • Israeli Defense Forces Response
    • Expresses regret but has video showing rocket launch from Qana
  • Israel Suspends Air Attack
    • Message delivered by U.S. State Department on July 30, 2006

• Public Opinion Polls
  • Americans Favor Neutral Stance on Israel-Hezbollah Conflict
    • Gallup/USA Today poll released on June 26, 2006
    • Poll also shows few on Hezbollah side
    • Concern that conflict will lead to wider war or World War III
    • Slipping opinion that President Bush has a grip on Middle East policy

• Syria
  No active web government web sites - all under construction or domain names switched

• United Nations
  • Security Council Resolution 1559
    • Resolution calls for the disarming of all militias in Lebanon
    • Dated September 2, 2004
  • Kofi Annan's Statement on UNIFIL Deaths
    • Statement on July 25, 2006 expresses shock over Israel's apparent targeting of UN observers in Khiyam, Lebanon
  • United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon
    • Facts and figures on the UN observer force and the number killed since its inception in 1978
    • Text of UN resolutions on Lebanon
    • Background, mandate, and maps

• United States
  • Congressional Hearings on Lebanon
    • Legislative Sourcebook (LLSDC)
      • Lists various options for free Congressional hearings by name of committee
      • Most likely committees are House International Relations, Senate Foreign Relations, and House and Senate Armed Services
    • Situation in Lebanon (Senate Armed Services, Octber 25-31, 1983)
    • Situation in Lebanon (Senate Foreign Relations, December 1, 1982)
    • Situation in Lebanon (House Foreign Affairs, September 9, 1982)
    • LEXIS-NEXIS Congressional (UMich Only)
      • Indexes hearings between 1789 and yesterday
      • Provides the full text in many current cases
  • Israel (State Department)
    • Latest press statements and news on the war
    • Links to Background Notes, Country Study, and Human Rights Reports on Israel
  • Lebanon (State Department)
    • Latest press statements and news on the war
    • Links to Background Notes, Country Study, and Human Rights Reports on Lebanon
  • President
    • Bush/Blair Statement on Lebanon (July 28, 2006)
  • U.S. Embassy in Beirut
    • Evacuation plans for U.S. citizens
    • Latest statements on U.S. policy toward the Israeli attack on Hezbollah and humanitarian assistance
    • Link to the Lebanon human rights report

• See also Middle East Conflicts

Grace York, Coordinator, Documents Center
University of Michigan Library
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