Snappy newsletters. Simple Facebook sharing. Spirited comments. Sweet features are waiting… GET THEM NOW!

Israeli Minister Urges Sanctions Against US

Upset with Obama shift, he also wants to influence elections

By Harry Kimball, Newser Staff

Posted Jun 10, 2009 2:18 PM CDT

(Newser) – An Israeli cabinet minister has suggested his country stop buying technology from the US and even try to influence US elections because of the Obama administration’s perceived shift on Mideast policy, the Jerusalem Post reports. Yossi Peled, a “minister-without-portfolio,” said “Obama’s ascendance represents a turning point in America's approach to the region” in a letter to PM Benjamin Netanyahu.

“Israel has its own interests and we have to know what our alternatives are,” Peled wrote. “I don’t think what I suggest is vengeful. I just think that even a superpower must behave like a partner.” The Israeli government said its “goal is to cooperate with the US.” One US Jewish Democratic official said the letter “shows Yossi Peled is terribly uninformed about US politics;” another said that Netanyahu “would reject it as outlandish.”

Israeli Prime Benjamin Netanyahu. (AP Photo)

President Barack Obama. (AP Photo)

Thousands of Israelis wave flags during a march celebrating Jerusalem Day. (AP Photo)

« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow

To report an error on this story, notify our editors.

OTHER STORIES ON OUR RADAR

AP Photo

35 Brutally Honest Reasons Men Say No to Sex (The Stir)

Man in Mugshot Explains Why He Has Half a Head (HuffPost)

Another Sign Rihanna and Chris Brown Might Get Back Together? (Celebuzz)

These Exes Were Spotted Making Out … and That's a Bad Thing (Bleacher Report)

Which Entertainer Pulled Out of 'Inappropriate' Whitney Tribute? (NewsOne)

Partner Links

A snapshot of the day's best news stories.

View Larger Grid

All Today Yesterday Pick a Date

COMMENTS

Read the comment policy

Showing 3 of 10 comments

emptycalm

Jun 11, 2009 2:28 AM CDT

*Lebanon

emptycalm

Jun 11, 2009 2:25 AM CDT

Haha if we don't support Isreal, no one will. They think they can generate anti-american sympathy but they don't realize that people hate them even more. With the election results in palestine as they were, they're freaked out because everyone is starting to realize they are the terrorists.

OWLWOMANXXXX

Jun 11, 2009 2:18 AM CDT

HOW DARE HE THREATEN TO INTERVENE IN AMERICAN POLITICS...as if this isn't already happening....Isreal has had a strong lobby in D.C. for years.....time Americans wised up

What's Popular Now on Facebook

Rick Santorum: Birth Control Is 'Not OK'

Valentine's Day Role-Playing Goes Very Wrong

Jerusalem Post (Israel) (Source Grid »)

World • Politics • US

Israel • sanctions • United States • Benjamin Netanyahu • Democratic Party • Obama administration • Yossi Peled • cabinet minister

More Newser Stories

Israel Warns Jewish Targets Around World of Iran Threat

Sabre-rattling means extra precautions even at schools and synagogues

(NEWSER) - Israel is warning its facilities in the US and around the world, as well as Jewish targets in general such as synagogues and schools, that they could be in danger from Iran, reports ABC News . "We predict that the threat on our sites around the world will increase … on both our guarded sites and 'soft' sites," said a letter by an Israeli security officer. "When there is posturing like this, we always pay extra attention to any threat streams," said one US official. More»

US Fears Israel Will Hit Iran Without Warning

Ehud Barak warns, 'Later will be too late'

(NEWSER) - The Obama administration is worried that Israel is on the verge of launching a military strike against Iran—and that Israel plans to give the US little to no warning or say in the matter, sources tell the Washington Post . Ehud Barak certainly reinforced that idea yesterday. "Whoever says 'later' may find that later is too late," the Israeli Defense minister said. (The Post notes he switched from Hebrew to English when saying the words, "Later is too late.") Leon Panetta, meanwhile, declined to refute a report that he was worried about an Israeli attack. More»

Israeli Women Refuse to Move to the Back of the Bus

Women defiant as ultra-Orthodox men try to impose religious views

(NEWSER) - Calling Rosa Parks. Israeli women are refusing to move to the back of the bus despite pressure from Orthodox Jews who believe in the segregation of the sexes. An 18-year-old female soldier recently boarded a Jerusalem bus and was ordered by an ultra-Orthodox man to the back. "I said I have a right to sit here," she told the Wall Street Journal. "Then other people gathered and started shouting. It was scary." Confrontations are increasing as the once-insular maxi-conservative Jews expand beyond their traditional communities and interact with mainstream Israelis. More»

Brits Steel for Possible US Strike on Iran: Report

Israel also gears for attack, Iran vows 'heavy' response

(NEWSER) - Talk of striking at Iran's nuclear enrichment program is rapidly heating up in Israel—and apparently the US. Not only is Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu trying to gather support for such attacks, but Britain's armed forces are working on contingency plans to support the US, should America launch a strike, reports the Guardian . UK intelligence reports say that President Obama does not want any additional military actions before next November's elections, but that mounting worries over Iran's nuclear programs and a new Tehran belligerence could force action. More»

Israel Freeing 1K Palestinians to Bring Soldier Home

Government strikes deal with Hamas for Gilad Shalit

(NEWSER) - After more than five years as a captive of Palestinian militants, soldier Gilad Shalit will be home within days, the Israeli government says. Shalit, now 25, was 19 when he was captured during a cross-border raid in 2006, and his captivity has long been an emotional issue in Israel. To secure his release, the Israeli government has promised Hamas that it will free 1,027 Palestinian prisoners, close to a fifth of all Palestinians held by Israel, the BBC reports. More»

NEWS FROM OUR PARTNERS

What is Newser?

Face it: there's too much news. At Newser, we choose the most thought-provoking and entertaining stories from hundreds of US and international sources and reduce them to a headline, picture, and two paragraphs. And we do it 24/7—you can come back morning, noon, night (and in between) for something new that matters. Read less, know more.

Learn more »

Partnering with: Slate

View Newser on the mobile website

Israeli Minister Urges Sanctions Against US

Upset with Obama shift, he also wants to influence elections

OTHER STORIES ON OUR RADAR

Israel • sanctions • United States • Benjamin Netanyahu • Democratic Party • Obama administration • Yossi Peled • cabinet minister

MOST POPULAR STORIES

[ By Views ]

[ By Comments ]

More Newser Stories

Israel Warns Jewish Targets Around World of Iran Threat

Sabre-rattling means extra precautions even at schools and synagogues

US Fears Israel Will Hit Iran Without Warning

Ehud Barak warns, 'Later will be too late'

Israeli Women Refuse to Move to the Back of the Bus

Women defiant as ultra-Orthodox men try to impose religious views

Brits Steel for Possible US Strike on Iran: Report

Israel also gears for attack, Iran vows 'heavy' response

Israel Freeing 1K Palestinians to Bring Soldier Home

Government strikes deal with Hamas for Gilad Shalit

About Us

Site

Newser By Users

Community

Site Maps

Tools

More News

What is Newser?

Israeli Minister Urges Sanctions Against US

Upset with Obama shift, he also wants to influence elections

Bookmark & Share

OTHER STORIES ON OUR RADAR

Israel • sanctions • United States • Benjamin Netanyahu • Democratic Party • Obama administration • Yossi Peled • cabinet minister

MOST POPULAR STORIES

[ By Views ]

[ By Comments ]

More Newser Stories

Israel Warns Jewish Targets Around World of Iran Threat

Sabre-rattling means extra precautions even at schools and synagogues

US Fears Israel Will Hit Iran Without Warning

Ehud Barak warns, 'Later will be too late'

Israeli Women Refuse to Move to the Back of the Bus

Women defiant as ultra-Orthodox men try to impose religious views

Brits Steel for Possible US Strike on Iran: Report

Israel also gears for attack, Iran vows 'heavy' response

Israel Freeing 1K Palestinians to Bring Soldier Home

Government strikes deal with Hamas for Gilad Shalit

About Us

Site

Newser By Users

Community

Site Maps

Tools

More News

What is Newser?