So after 21 months of violence, a ray of hope could be observed. A chance for cease-fire, for a cessation of violence. Unilaterally even, without any demands from occupying side. Israel's reaction was immediate and swift. "One and a half hours after the Tanzim leadership approved the document at its Jenin gathering, Israel carried out the assassination of Salah Shehadeh, in the course of which dozens of civilians were killed and wounded as well. In this way, Israel apparently destroyed the chance to test the viability of a cease-fire" (ibid.).

Though this be madness, yet there is Method in it. Time and again, Israeli assassinations (as well as other offensive measures) abruptly ended prolonged periods of hope. In November 2001, the assassination of the Hamas activist Mahmoud Abu Hanoud was carried out just when the Hamas was respecting for two months its agreement with Arafat not to attack inside Israel. In January 2002, the assassination of Raed Karmi ended a few weeks of relative quiet in the territories. The same pattern repeated itself this time too. The operation was no mistake; the decision to use a bomb instead of missiles, the more usual means used by Israel for its extra-judiciary killings, was undoubtedly deliberate. And whoever gave the order to drop, in the middle of the night, a 1.000 kg bomb on a residential house in one of the most densely populated strips on earth, knew very well what he was doing. It was a premeditated act of state terrorism, a cold-blooded massacre. 14 innocent civilians, 9 of them children, were killed to ensure the continuation of Palestinian terrorism, in which many more innocent civilians will be killed.

It has been established beyond any reasonable doubt that Sharon does not want to stop terrorism, but rather to perpetuate it. The very moment political negotiations seemed to be serious, the very moment Palestinians intended to stop terrorism, Israel dropped a bomb. Whether Sharon should be sent to the Hague or rather to Guantanamo is one question; a more important one is: why has he done it?

The Benefits of Terrorism

Here is where terrorism comes in. Israel cannot carry out these atrocious plans without effective propaganda. Terrorism has always been an excellent excuse, even more so since September 11th. The plans were there long before, as documented painstakingly by Israeli analyst Tanya Reinhart. They have nothing to do with terrorism: they are aimed at entrenching the Israeli occupation, making it irreversible and reducing the Palestinians to ashes. But every terror attack enables Israel to implement the next steps in its premeditated plans, and to sell it to the world as "self-defence", "retaliation", "prevention" etc. No wonder, then, that none of these plans actually stops terrorism: they are not meant to. And since terrorism gives the best legitimation for carrying them out, stopping terrorism would be, from Israel's point of view, counter-productive.

Palestinian terrorism thus serves Israel's interests on both an international and a national level. Internationally, Israel's propaganda machine efficiently exploits every terror attack to strengthen Israel's image as a victim, and to obscure and justify the proceeding oppression of the Palestinians. Moreover, the Israeli use of terrorism has now been adopted by the American administration, that keeps sending Israel money – $200 million last week – for "fighting terrorism" (note that Israel may spend it as it wishes!); and, as the Washington Post put it (28.7.02), "the United States should not pressure Sharon's government while Palestinian violence continues."

Nationally, as Spinoza observed back in the 17th century, people in adversity "know not where to turn, but beg and pray for counsel from every passer-by. No plan is then too futile, too absurd, or too fatuous for their adoption; the most frivolous causes will raise them to hope, or plunge them into despair." Keeping the Israeli people constantly exposed to fatal violence (and to "terror alerts", true or false) is the best way to ensure national coherence. Understandably terrified, most Israelis indeed back the most futile, absurd and fatuous – not to say immoral – operations of their government, misled to believe that its goal is securing their lives rather than perpetuating a murderous occupation that most Israelis do not want.

CIA and MOSSAD help form and train SAVAK, the internal security apparatus of the Shah. CIA provides SAVAK with lists of Communists who the Savak would either imprison or execute.

The CIA worked with the Mossad and SAVAK to covertly support uprisings of Iraqi Kurds in 1975 to destabilize Pre-Saddam Iraq.

It was alleged by private intelligence agency Stratfor, based on "sources close to Israeli intelligence", that Dr. Ardeshir Hosseinpour, a scientist involved in the Iranian nuclear program, was killed by the Mossad on January 15, 2007.

A US intelligence official told The Washington Post that Israel orchestrated the defection of Iranian general Ali Reza Askari on February 7, 2007. This has been denied by Israeli spokesman Mark Regev. The Sunday Times reported that Askari has been a Mossad source since 2003, and left only when his cover was about to be blown.

In July 1973, Ahmed Bouchiki, an innocent Moroccan waiter in Lillehammer, Norway, was killed while walking with his pregnant wife. He had been mistaken for Ali Hassan Salameh, one of the leaders of Black September, the Palestinian group responsible for the Munich massacre, who had been given shelter in Norway. The Mossad agents had used fake Canadian passports, which angered the Canadian government. Six Mossad agents were arrested, and the incident became known as the Lillehammer affair.

In 1997, two Mossad agents were caught in Jordan, which had signed a peace treaty with Israel, on a mission to assassinate Sheikh Khaled Mashal, a leader of Hamas, by spraying him with poison at a pro-Hamas rally in Amman. Again, they were using fake Canadian passports. This led to a diplomatic row with Canada and Jordan. Israel was forced to provide the antidote to the poison and to release around 70 Palestinian prisoners, in particular the Hamas leader Sheikh Ahmed Yassin, in exchange for the Mossad agents, who would otherwise have faced the death penalty for attempted murder.

By the mid 1970s, Israel's relations with South Africa had warmed. In 1975, increasing economic co-operation between Israel and South Africa was reported, including the construction of a major new railway in Israel, and the building of a desalination plant in South Africa. In April 1976 South African Prime Minister John Vorster was invited to make a state visit, meeting Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin. Later in 1976, the 5th Conference of Non-Aligned Nations in Colombo, Sri Lanka, adopted a resolution calling for an oil embargo against France and Israel because of their arms sales to South Africa. In 1977, South African Foreign Minister Pik Botha visited Israel to discuss South African issues with Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin and Foreign Minister Moshe Dayan.

In 1981, Israeli Defence Minister Ariel Sharon visited South African forces in Namibia for 10 days, later saying that South Africa needed more weapons to fight Soviet infiltration in the region.

In 1984, Pik Botha again visited Israel but this time only for an unofficial meeting with Israeli Foreign Minister Yitzhak Shamir.

U.S. Intelligence believed that Israel participated in South African nuclear research projects and supplied advanced non-nuclear weapons technology to South Africa during the 1970s, while South Africa was developing its own atomic bombs. According to David Albright of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, "Faced with sanctions, South Africa began to organize clandestine procurement networks in Europe and the United States, and it began a long, secret collaboration with Israel." although he goes on to say "A common question is whether Israel provided South Africa with weapons design assistance, although available evidence argues against significant cooperation." According to the Nuclear Threat Initiative, in 1977 Israel traded 30 grams of tritium in exchange for 50 tons of South African uranium and in the mid-80s assisted with the development of the RSA-3 ballistic missile.  Also in 1977, according to foreign press reports, it was suspected that South Africa signed a pact with Israel that included the transfer of military technology and the manufacture of at least six atom bombs.

Chris McGreal has claimed that "Israel provided expertise and technology that was central to South Africa's development of its nuclear bombs". In 2000, Dieter Gerhardt, Soviet spy and former commander in the South African Navy, claimed that Israel agreed in 1974 to arm eight Jericho II missiles with "special warheads" for South Africa.

Double standard: Iran has said that the double standard applied to Israel is unjust and disturbing given its possession of nuclear weapons, its non-adherence to the NPT, and its treatment of the Palestinians over many years. Israel has unofficially stated it needs to have nuclear weapons to assure its survival in a predominantly hostile Middle East environment, since its independence in 1948 and following the Holocaust. Iran has responded that Arabs and the Middle East should not bear responsibility for crimes against humanity and atrocities committed by the Nazis during World War II against the Jews in Europe.