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In 2003, Ariel Sharon, vetoed an initial deal, which would allow British Gas to supply Israel with natural gas from Gaza's offshore wells. (The Independent, August 19, 2003)

The election victory of Hamas in 2006 was conducive to the demise of the Palestinian Authority, which became confined to the West Bank, under the proxy regime of Mahmoud Abbas.

In 2006, British Gas "was close to signing a deal to pump the gas to Egypt." (Times, May, 23, 2007). According to reports, British Prime Minister Tony Blair intervened on behalf of Israel with a view to shunting the agreement with Egypt.

The following year, in May 2007, the Israeli Cabinet approved a proposal by Prime Minister Ehud Olmert "to buy gas from the Palestinian Authority." The proposed contract was for $4 billion, with profits of the order of $2 billion of which one billion was to go the Palestinians.

Tel Aviv, however, had no intention on sharing the revenues with Palestine. An Israeli team of negotiators was set up by the Israeli Cabinet to thrash out a deal with the BG Group, bypassing both the Hamas government and the Palestinian Authority:

"Israeli defence authorities want the Palestinians to be paid in goods and services and insist that no money go to the Hamas-controlled Government." (Ibid, emphasis added)

The objective was essentially to nullify the contract signed in 1999 between the BG Group and the Palestinian Authority under Yasser Arafat.

Under the proposed 2007 agreement with BG, Palestinian gas from Gaza's offshore wells was to be channeled by an undersea pipeline to the Israeli seaport of Ashkelon, thereby transferring control over the sale of the natural gas to Israel.
The deal fell through. The negotiations were suspended:

"Mossad Chief Meir Dagan opposed the transaction on security grounds, that the proceeds would fund terror". (Member of Knesset Gilad Erdan, Address to the Knesset on "The Intention of Deputy Prime Minister Ehud Olmert to Purchase Gas from the Palestinians When Payment Will Serve Hamas," March 1, 2006, quoted in Lt. Gen. (ret.) Moshe Yaalon, Does the Prospective Purchase of British Gas from Gaza's Coastal Waters Threaten Israel's National Security? Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs, October 2007)

Israel's intent was to foreclose the possibility that royalties be paid to the Palestinians. In December 2007, The BG Group withdrew from the negotiations with Israel and in January 2008 they closed their office in Israel.(BG website).

Invasion Plan on The Drawing Board

The invasion plan of the Gaza Strip under "Operation Cast Lead" was set in motion in June 2008, according to Israeli military sources:
"Sources in the defense establishment said Defense Minister Ehud Barak instructed the Israel Defense Forces to prepare for the operation over six months ago [June or before June] , even as Israel was beginning to negotiate a ceasefire agreement with Hamas."(Barak Ravid, Operation "Cast Lead": Israeli Air Force strike followed months of planning, Haaretz, December 27, 2008)

That very same month, the Israeli authorities contacted British Gas, with a view to resuming crucial negotiations pertaining to the purchase of Gaza's natural gas:

contd;

"Both Ministry of Finance director general Yarom Ariav and Ministry of National Infrastructures director general Hezi Kugler agreed to inform BG of Israel's wish to renew the talks.

The sources added that BG has not yet officially responded to Israel's request, but that company executives would probably come to Israel in a few weeks to hold talks with government officials." (Globes online- Israel's Business Arena, June 23, 2008)

The decision to speed up negotiations with British Gas (BG Group) coincided, chronologically, with the planning of the invasion of Gaza initiated in June. It would appear that Israel was anxious to reach an agreement with the BG Group prior to the invasion, which was already in an advanced planning stage.

Moreover, these negotiations with British Gas were conducted by the Ehud Olmert government with the knowledge that a military invasion was on the drawing board. In all likelihood, a new "post war" political-territorial arrangement for the Gaza strip was also being contemplated by the Israeli government.

In fact, negotiations between British Gas and Israeli officials were ongoing in October 2008, 2-3 months prior to the commencement of the bombings on December 27th.

In November 2008, the Israeli Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of National Infrastructures instructed Israel Electric Corporation (IEC) to enter into negotiations with British Gas, on the purchase of natural gas from the BG's offshore concession in Gaza. (Globes, November 13, 2008)

"Ministry of Finance director general Yarom Ariav and Ministry of National Infrastructures director general Hezi Kugler wrote to IEC CEO Amos Lasker recently, informing him of the government's decision to allow negotiations to go forward, in line with the framework proposal it approved earlier this year.

The IEC board, headed by chairman Moti Friedman, approved the principles of the framework proposal a few weeks ago. The talks with BG Group will begin once the board approves the exemption from a tender." (Globes Nov. 13, 2008)

Gaza and Energy Geopolitics

The military occupation of Gaza is intent upon transferring the sovereignty of the gas fields to Israel in violation of international law.
What can we expect in the wake of the invasion?

What is the intent of Israel with regard to Palestine's Natural Gas reserves?

A new territorial arrangement, with the stationing of Israeli and/or "peacekeeping" troops?

The militarization of the entire Gaza coastline, which is strategic for Israel?

The outright confiscation of Palestinian gas fields and the unilateral declaration of Israeli sovereignty over Gaza's maritime areas?

If this were to occur, the Gaza gas fields would be integrated into Israel's offshore installations, which are contiguous to those of the Gaza Strip. (See Map 1 above)
.
These various offshore installations are also linked up to Israel's energy transport corridor, extending from the port of Eilat, which is an oil pipeline terminal, on the Red Sea to the seaport - pipeline terminal at Ashkelon, and northwards to Haifa, and eventually linking up through a proposed Israeli-Turkish pipeline with the Turkish port of Ceyhan.

Ceyhan is the terminal of the Baku, Tblisi Ceyhan Trans Caspian pipeline.

"What is envisaged is to link the BTC pipeline to the Trans-Israel Eilat-Ashkelon pipeline, also known as Israel's Tipline." (See Michel Chossudovsky, The War on Lebanon and the Battle for Oil, Global Research, July 23, 2006)

http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=11680

Now...THIS...is interesting!!...

Thanks Lagoona - I thought so too

Just a little anecdote of insignificance...

...on a thread like this, which could be the CS version of a little Watergate exposé....and we get ONE response!!??....


...ok, back to more important things...

.....like the "Who wants to Date Me" thread....

I've got more natural gas than the world can handle! Alot of it comes from reading super long posts

Dang, 'goona, I would if you just had the right equipment and a little more hair.

Thanks Trish -this is worth to be investigated

Thanks HiFi, I was going to put it on your thread but figured it deserved a thread all of its own so that it didnt get overlooked

heres a pretty interesting Times article http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/natural_resources/article1826739.ece

I think its that important too Lagoona - lets see what happens hey

This is very interesting Trish. However, it seems that Hamas should have had enough sense to realize when they had a "gold mine" right in front of them. That alone should have given Hamas leaders reason enough to stop shooting rockets into Israel and sign a permanent peace treaty. As the article says, this would have brought 2 million dollars to the Palestinians and much needed medical, food and other needs into their territory.This would have been good business smarts for Hamas. There would be no need to have UN convoys of food and supplies and so many more people would be smiling and living.
Evidentally, this business deal wasn't satisfactory until every Jew was eliminated too.
It would appear then that out of Hamas's constitution to eliminate the Jews,their leaders have brought self anihilation to their people.
Any country that has a warring neighbor that keeps taunting it with rocket firing, has to have a strategic plan of action to implement or they will be caught by surprise by even more than taunting. Israel is no different considering they have been caught by surprise many times and just came out of the Lebanon campaign.
They were surprised in the past by rocket attacks,the underground tunnels, abduction of their soldiers, terrorist bombings in marketplaces,kibbutzes,restaurants, discoteques,and even at Lod Airport. They were attacked many times with minor skirmishes and major wars.

Would that we could all bask in the glow of hindsight...... I have no idea why Hamas didnt grasp at that two billion dollars sooner, possibly because under siege conditions they recognised that promises of £ and $ dont feed your family and they obviously didnt open borders either - they were in a lose lose situation imo and have been so for the last 50 or so years since more than half of their country was ceded to (or by depending how you look at it) the zionists............

Excellent thread trish...but why am I not surprised.

Thanks Gra - Im still waiting for all the nay sayers coming in to tell me this is wrong.........

This info took some finding I can tell you but once I did find it theres lots out there to back it up - theres a good reuters financial thing somewhere on my comp - will find it when my flu meds subside

Who did GB invade for oil? So this one is Gas is it? And still the world does nothing. George Bush is a mass murderer. Hitler all over again and just like the Germans did nothing to stop him the Americans do nothing to stop GB.

When the Nazis came for the communists,
I remained silent;
I was not a communist.

When they locked up the social democrats,
I remained silent;
I was not a social democrat.

When they came for the trade unionists,
I did not speak out;
I was not a trade unionist.

When they came for the Jews,
I remained silent;
I was not a Jew.

When they came for me,
there was no one left to speak out


Martin Niemoller

very important post , thanks for posting dear !

actually we ( Palestinian ) know very well that Israel has been taking advantages of our nature and rich land since day one, they are taking advantages of the olive oil and the olive and they export it abroad and it gives them in return big time good money, since ages. in addition to the fine fruits and vegetables , and now you are talking about the gas and millions of $$$$$ .

we know that they has been stealing us since day one , then why the killing , cant they keep on stealing peacefully ??!!

Oh Nora, Im so sorry for what you are going through - Im ashamed if the truth be told - Please know that not everybody over here goes along with what our governments are doing either

Im very well aware that from before day one (1947) the dirty has been being done - they cant keep on stealing peacefully because, ultimately, the truth will out...........

We all should be aware when choosing our food at the market - we need to reject anything which says 'product of Israel' - and this is just a start - we need to boycot any Israeli goods as well as petitioning our governments to impose trade embargoes too..........

love from here Nora