In unprecedented speech, Islamic Republic’s prosecutor general says regime has censored over five million sites due to ‘unethical content’; bloggers concerned over new bill that would allow execution for publishing anti-Islamic material online.

Five million internet websites are currently being blocked by the Iranian government, a progressive site called ‘Rooz’ reported Wednesday, quoting the Islamic Republic’s prosecutor general as its source. The report added that a few million additional sites were being censored as a “preemptive measure” by the regime. The report is the first ever in which a legislative source from Iran has divulged information about the regime’s censorship policies.

During a conference in the country Prosecutor General Abdolsamad Khoram Abadi explained that most of the sites were blocked because they “contained unethical content”, a reference to pornography and other anti-Islamic entertainment.

Ismail Radkani, a spokesman for the company responsible for the blocking of websites in Iran, also spoke during the conference. He said over a thousand such sites were being “automatically” withdrawn from the public eye every month, according to legislature passed down from the government.

“Every day 200-300 unethical sites are being automatically blocked,” he said.

Iran’s population currently stands at 71 million, and the number of web-surfers, currently estimated at about 20 million, is steadily rising. The Islamic Republic ranks second only to Israel in its percentage of web-surfers of any country the Middle East.

Most of the internet-savvy Iranians have devised methods of circumventing the censorship imposed upon them, and make use of different proxies and alternate addresses when publishing their online blogs.But the Iranian government has insisted on battling the “westernization” of its younger population, and the internet is considered a major culprit in this scheme.

 Abadi estimated the internet as a more imminent danger than satellite dishes, “because of the fact that the internet is more accessible”. Thus, he called for the establishment of an “internet police” in his country.

Distorting Khameini’s words illegal

Two years ago President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s government approved an “internet and blog registration plan”, which ordered that every site and blog originating in the country seek an approval stamp from a nominated committee. However many bloggers decided to boycott the plan, and only 850 sites and blogs have registered.

Bloggers and sites that place “unethical content” online are subject to penalties by law. A website is deemed illegal if it contains content “weakening Islamic values, insulting the Islam and its martyrs, inciting harm to security and the interests of the Islamic Republic, or distorting the words of (Ali) Khamenei” among other things.

In February of 2008 the Iranian parliament approved part of another bill against “computer crimes”, which has caused a great uprising among web-surfers because of the severe sentences it would impose, ranging from jail time to execution.

By Joel C. Rosenberg

(Jerusalem, Israel, November 17, 2008) — Israel is unlikely to launch massive airstrikes to neutralize Iran’s nuclear weapons program before the U.S. inauguration on January 20, 2009, barring dramatic new intelligence that points to an imminent Iranian attack.

That’s my sense of things here after spending nearly a week on the ground.

There is scant evidence of a nation preparing for imminent hostilities. The Israeli political system is engaged in gearing up for elections next February 10th. What’s more, senior Israeli officials are still urging the U.S. to take the lead on stopping Iran. “We must unite our forces, led by the international community, led by the United States of America,” said outgoing Prime Minister Ehud Olmert in an address to some 4,000 Jewish leaders from around the world. He called for bilateral and international sanctions on the Islamic Republic of Iran and told American Jewish leaders: “Each and every one of us needs to play a role - lobby your government, lead your organization or identify a project that can exert additional pressure on Iran….It must become more costly to Iran to pursue nuclear weapons than to give [them] up.”

Last Thursday, I had the honor of addressing the World Likud Congress (pro-Israel political activists from the U.S., Africa and Europe) here in the holy city. I was on a panel of Israeli and Iranian experts on the threat posed to the Jewish State by the Ayatollah Khamenei, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, and the current regime in Tehran. While I agreed with much that my fellow panelists said, I was struck by their lack of urgency for Israel to take action. One said that Israel shouldn’t strike unless its leaders can be absolutely certain that by doing so Iran will not be able to build the Bomb for at least another ten years. Another suggested Israel should not infuriate the incoming Obama administration by launching attacks on Iran without a clear green light from the new President.

I respectfully disagreed. First, let’s be clear: there is almost no scenario by which the Bush administration is going to launch attacks on Iran in the next sixty days or so and thus hand an on-going war to a new American President. Second, the Obama administration has made it crystal clear that it is not going to make neutralizing Iran’s nuclear threat via military means a priority, much less a top priority. Just the opposite: Obama intends to launch “unconditional” negotiations with Tehran. So waiting for the U.S. to “take the lead” is a non-starter at this point. Third, Israel faces an existential threat from Iranian nuclear weapons and it cannot afford to wait much longer. Once Iran has the Bomb, six million Jews here will be in supreme peril. There will never be a “perfect” time to strike Iran, and Israeli leaders will never be able to be certain ahead of time just how long their attacks will push Iran back from getting the Bomb. But is not buying five more years of security - if ten are not possible - still worth it? Fourth, Israel should never surrender its national security decision-making process to Washington. Did Jerusalem wait for the U.S. to act against the enemies of the Jewish people in 1967? Did Jerusalem wait for the U.S. to bomb Iraq’s nuclear facilities in 1981? Fifth, more than ever, Israel leaders like “the sons of Issachar” described in I Chronicles 12, “men who understood the times and knew what Israel should do.”

[UPDATE: President-elect Obama now says he supports the Saudi "peace" initiative. This would require Israel to go back to its 1967 border, re-divide Jerusalem, give up the strategically vital Golan Heights, and give away all of the Biblical lands of Judea and Samaria and the strategically vital Jordan Valley.]

As I’ve written previously, war with Iran will be horrific at many levels. I do not wish for it. Indeed, I am praying passionately for the peace of Jerusalem, as the Bible teaches me to do. But the notion of Iran’s genocidal, apocalyptic leaders getting weapons of mass destruction in their hands is completely unacceptable. I am, therefore, resigned to the possibility that there may now be no other option but for Israel to launch preemptive strikes, since it is increasingly clear Washington won’t.

As I have no influence on such decisions, I am focusing on helping Israelis prepare for the next war. For much of the past week I have been with my Joshua Fund team here in Israel, working with local Jewish and Christian leaders to stockpile emergency relief supplies. I have also had the privilege of preaching at two Israeli congregations to encourage local believers here to continue walking with the Lord, loving their neighbors, praying without ceasing, and girding themselves for the dark days that very well may lie ahead. More on that in my next dispatch.

[AP: Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert speaks during the General Assembly of the United Jewish Communities in Jerusalem, Sunday, Nov. 16, 2008. Olmert told the gathering that Iran is still trying to make nuclear weapons, and the world must make a concerted effort to stop the project.]

Iran has successfully test-fired a new generation of surface-to-surface solid-fuel missile, the country’s defense minister, Mostafa Mohammad Najjar said Wednesday.

Iran fires missile from submarine during exercise in Persian Gulf.

Najjar said on state television that the missile, named Sajjil, was a high-speed projectile manufactured at the aerospace organization, affiliated to the Defense Ministry.

He did not say when the missile was tested.

He described the missile has having “two solid-fuel engines” and an “extraordinary high capability.”

A weekend 5.0 Richter earthquake in Iran was actually a nuclear bomb test, says an Iranian nuclear scientist claiming to be working on the project.

This past Saturday night, southern Iran experienced what was reported as a significant earthquake - a seismic event measuring 5.0 on the Richter scale. Its epicenter was just north of the strategic Straits of Hormuz, which separates Iran from Abu Dhabi and Oman and which is the gateway to the Persian Gulf.

The report quotes an Iranian nuclear scientist who claims to be working in uranium enrichment for the project, and who said that the “quake” was acutally an undergound nuclear bomb test.

Israel Insider adds that the test/quake was actually the second in a series. Nine days ago, a 4.8 Richter scale event occurred, with its epicenter only five kilometers away from the weekend tremor.

The Israel Insider source reports that two nuclear rockets are currently ready - and are intended for use against Israel in the coming months.

If the report is correct, it would belie previous speculation that Iran would not begin nuclear testing until it had more nuclear-bomb production capability.

The geographical location of the test has several advantages. It is exposed to significant seismic activity, which could serve to mask nuclear tests; it is believed to be close to Iran’s nuclear development facility; delivery and transport of material and personnel can be effected easily through the Hormuz Strait; and Iranian enemies would hesitate to bomb the area because that would threaten the flow of a substantial percentage of the world’s oil.

Reuters reports Thursday morning that Iran has begun building a line of naval bases along its southern coast and up to the Straits of Hormuz.

Let me begin by saying I am hesitant to send this to you because it is an unconfirmed report, and I hope it is wrong. But I wanted you to at least be aware and we’ll track the story together in the coming days.

An Israeli news service is reporting this morning that an earthquake in Iran last weekend may have been triggered by an Iranian nuclear weapons test, citing an Iranian nuclear scientist working on the project as its source.

“This past Saturday night, southern Iran experienced what was reported as a significant earthquake - a seismic event measuring 5.0 on the Richter scale,” reports Arutz Sheva/Israel National News, attributing the story first to the Israel Insider website. “Its epicenter was just north of the strategic Straits of Hormuz, which separates Iran from Abu Dhabi and Oman and which is the gateway to the Persian Gulf. The report quotes an Iranian nuclear scientist who claims to be working in uranium enrichment for the project, and who said that the ‘quake’ was acutally an undergound nuclear bomb test. Israel Insider adds that the test/quake was actually the second in a series. Nine days ago, a 4.8 Richter scale event occurred, with its epicenter only five kilometers away from the weekend tremor. The Israel Insider source reports that two nuclear rockets are currently ready - and are intended for use against Israel in the coming months. If the report is correct, it would belie previous speculation that Iran would not begin nuclear testing until it had more nuclear-bomb production capability.”

Let me stress again that this is an unconfirmed report. While the Associated Press did report a 5.0 earthquake in Iran this past weekend, as of 7:30am eastern on Friday the allegation that the quake was connected to Iranian nuclear testing has not been picked up by other major Israeli news services such as the Jerusalem Post, Ynet, or Haaretz. At the very least, let’s keep praying for the peace of Jerusalem, and preparing to care for those in the epicenter who would be severely affected if war is coming soon.

Meanwhile, Israelis will soon head to the polls to choose a new prime minister and a new parliament (Knesset). Kadima leader Tzipi Livni was unable to put together a governing coalition to replace the outgoing Prime Minister Ehud Olmert. So Israel will hold national elections on February 10th. Livni, who is currently the country’s Foreign Minister, will square off against former Prime Minister Benjamin “Bibi” Netanyahu. Please be praying that the Lord’s will would be done in Israel as well as here in the U.S. with our own critically important elections coming next Tuesday. Americans and Israelis desperately need leaders like the “men of Issachar, who understood the times and knew what Israel should do.” (I Chronicles 12:32)

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