Israel's move toward early Election may shelve any attack on Iran

Two top Israeli security officials said Wednesday that the prospect of early national elections will have no influence over a decision over whether to strike Iranian nuclear sites.

Some say Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is unlikely to risk his reelection by striking Iran. The Iran issue could also lead to a divisive campaign.

Israel'smove toward early elections is the latest sign that its threatened attack against Iran's nuclear facilities is unlikely to take place in the coming months.

The Israeli military said Wednesday it has closed its investigation into the shelling deaths of 21 members of a single Palestinian family and would not file any charges in what was one of the gravest incidents in the 2009 war in the Gaza Strip.

The military's move, which exonerates Israeli soldiers from any responsibility in the killings, outraged relatives of the killed Palestinians and the Israeli human rights group that had pressed for the investigation. They said the findings proved the army is not capable of investigating the conduct of its soldiers.

Longtime grasshoppers know I've been skeptical about Israel actually 

carrying through on threats to strike Iran in an attempt to 

degrade the Iranian nuclear weapons program

"We are talking about a crime against civilians," said Salah Samouni, 34, whose 2-year-old daughter was killed when Israeli shells slammed into the Gaza City house where the family had gathered.

Though no final decision has been made about moving up national elections slated for next year, the Knesset, or parliament, is talking about dissolving this month and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is expected to announce as soon as next week an election date in September.

Some officials predict the chances of an Israeli airstrike against Iran will decrease because a divisive political campaign would paralyze the government and focus attention on domestic issues.

"He can't do anything before elections," said Knesset member Daniel Ben-Simon of the Labor Party. "He's a lame duck. Nothing will be decided before the vote."

Both Defense Minister Ehud Barak and Deputy Prime Minister Moshe Yaalon said in published comments on Wednesday that policy toward Iran will be based solely on strategic interests.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu signaled this week that he may call parliamentary elections a year ahead of schedule, casting additional uncertainty over any Israeli military plans.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is expected to announce as soon 

as next week an election date in September.

Israel considers Iran a threat to its existence because of its nuclear and missile development programs, frequent reference to Israel's destruction by Iranian leaders and Iran's support of violent anti-Israel groups in Lebanon and Gaza.

Israel has been warning for years that Iran is trying to construct nuclear bombs. Iran insists its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes.

Echoing Barak's sentiments was Deputy Prime Minster Moshe Yaalon. "The election will not be a consideration in the Iranian issue. If we need to make decisions we will make them," he told the Maariv daily.

There has been a precedent to big military offensive prior to an election.

Doomsday Clock' advances Ticks One Minute toward Destruction

The symbolic "Doomsday Clock" scientists use to Representation what they feel is the risk from nuclear holocaust or an act of great destruction has moved a minute closer to midnight.

The clock analogy represented the threat of global nuclear war; however, since 2007 it has also reflected climate-changing technologies and "new developments in the life sciences and The branch of engineering nanotechnology that could inflict irrevocable harm."

The Doomsday Clock is a symbolic clock face, made ready for service since 1947 by the board of trainer of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists at the University of Chicago. The closer the clock is to midnight, the closer the world is estimated to be to global disaster. The most recent officially-announced setting — five minutes to midnight (11:55pm)  

It was made on 10 January 2012. Reflecting international events dangerous to humankind, the clock's hands have been adjusted twenty times since its inception in 1947 when the clock was initially set to seven minutes to midnight (11:53pm).

The Doomsday Clock is a symbolic clock face, maintained since 1947 by the board of directors of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists at the University of Chicago.

"It is now five minutes to midnight," Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists (BAS) director Kennette Benedict announced today (Jan. 10) at a press conference in Washington, D.C.

To represents a symbolic step closer to doomsday, a change from the clock's previous mark of six minutes to midnight, set in January 2010. 

The Doomsday Clock advanced one minute today, symbolizing increased nuclear dangers in our world.

It is now 11:55 p.m. on the symbolic clock that reflects threats to humanity and the planet, especially from nuclear weapons. Midnight represents the end of mankind from its own destruction.

The closer the clock is to midnight, the closer the world is estimated to be to global disaster.

On Tuesday, The Bulletin of Atomic Scientists concluded the clock should be moved to five minutes before midnight.

We questioned the move then, as climate change remained unaddressed by the global community. And evidently, the atomic scientists now agree. The BAS released the following statement today:

It is five minutes to midnight. Two years ago, it appeared that world leaders might address the truly global threats that we face. In many cases, that trend has not continued or been reversed. For that reason, the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists is moving the clock hand one minute closer to midnight, back to its time in 2007.

Two years ago, it appeared that world leaders might address the truly global threats we face, said Allison Macfarlane, who chairs the group's science and security board. "In many cases, this trend has not continued or has been reversed. For that reason, the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists is moving the clock one minute closer to midnight, back to it's time in 2007

The need to act is urgent," he said, saying action also is needed against the factors scientists believe cause global warming.

Climate change is happening, Krauss said, listing it among the risk factors in the Doomsday Clock announcement. "It's happening now, it's measurable, and it's clearly related to human activity, and the need to react becomes more urgent.

We need the political leadership to affirm the primacy of science as a way of knowing, or problems will be far worse than they are already, Socolow said.

The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists will announce its decision this afternoon in Washington, D.C.