In The News:

There are a lot of interesting news stories today:

Netanyahu: Strike On Iran's Nuclear Facilities Possible Within Months

An attack on Iran could take place within a matter of months, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a series of television interviews on Thursday.

"We're not standing with a stopwatch in hand," he said. "It's not a matter of days or weeks, but also not of years. The result must be removal of the threat of nuclear weapons in Iran's hands."

U.S. Magazine Forms Iran War "Doomsday Clock", Sets It To 10 Minutes To Midnight

The new "Iran War Clock" utilizes a wide-ranging panel of experts in order to form what The Atlantic hopes would be an educated estimation as to the chances of all-out war in the Middle East. The project is an apparent take on the famous "Doomsday Clock , initiated by scientists to try and work out how close was mankind to the end of the world.

Israel Asks U.S. For Arms That Could Aid Iran Strike

Israel has asked the United States for advanced "bunker-buster" bombs and refueling planes that could improve its ability to attack Iran's underground nuclear sites, an Israeli official said on Thursday.

"Such a request was made" around the time of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's visit to Washington this week, the official said, confirming media reports.

But the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity given the sensitivity of the issue, played down as "unrealistic" Israeli reports that the United States would condition supplying the hardware on Israel promising not to attack Iran this year.

A front-page article in the Israeli newspaper Ma'ariv on Thursday said Obama had told Netanyahu Washington would supply Israel with upgraded military equipment in return for assurances there would be no attack on Iran in 2012.

Israel is widely assumed to have the Middle East's only nuclear arsenal but its conventional firepower may not be enough to deliver lasting damage to Iran's distant, dispersed and well-fortified facilities, many experts say.

Israel has limited stocks of older, smaller bunker-busting bombs and a small fleet of refueling planes, all supplied by Washington.

Netanyahu Hints Iran Attack Just Months Away

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu set a general timetable for a possible strike on Iran Thursday evening, for the first time.

Netanyahu said that Israel has not yet made a decision on whether to attack the Iranian nuclear sites. He added that the timing of such a strike "is not a matter of days or weeks," but on the other hand, "it is not a matter of years."

He warned that Israel faces "an existential danger," and added: "If I do not make the right decision, there may be no one left to explain to [why I made the wrong choice]."

IDF Upgrades Notification System In Face Of Growing Missile Threat

The Israel Defense Forces has acquired a new system that will let it see exactly where every missile strike has landed if the home front is under attack.

The new system is a modification of an existing command-and-control system called Castle Lake, which gives details on the location of Israeli forces and, as far as they are known, of enemy targets - anything from rocket launchers to enemy commanders.

The home front data will also enable commanders to evaluate the effectiveness of Israel's operations against the enemy: for instance, whether attacking a Hezbollah stronghold in Lebanon had any effect on the rate of rocket launches from Lebanon.

Last month, speaking at the annual Herzliya Conference, Military Intelligence director Maj. Gen. Aviv Kochavi warned that there are currently some 200,000 rockets and missiles aimed at Israel. MI estimates that most of these missiles have a maximum range of 40 kilometers, but thousands of them have ranges of hundreds of kilometers.

Kochavi's remarks underscored the growing missile threat on Israel's home front. While the Home Front Command has been working on a plan to reinforce buildings in the most vulnerable parts of the country, even after it is complete, 1.5 million Israelis will lack appropriate access to shelters.

Panetta Caught In One-World Scheme

Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta is facing criticism for statements he made at a hearing this week regarding the use of international military force without the explicit approval of Congress.

WND was first to report that before he was appointed chief of the CIA in 2009, Panetta co-chaired an initiative to regulate U.S. oceans and cede them to United Nations-based international law.

Panetta’s oceans initiative was a key partner of an organization that promotes world government, Citizens for Global Solutions.

Also, the group’s parent organization, the World Federalist Movement, promotes democratized global institutions with plenary constitutional power. It is a coordinator and member of Responsibility to Protect, the controversial United Nations military doctrine used by Obama as the main justification for U.S. and international airstrikes against Libya.

At the hearing this week, Panetta stressed the need for “international permission” to launch an international military campaign against Syria, skirting questions about seeking congressional approval for such use of military force.

Panetta repeatedly stressed the need to seek the approval of the international community, including the U.N. and NATO countries.

Until his appointment as CIA director in 2009, Panetta co-chaired the Joint Ocean Commission Initiative, the partner of Citizens for Global Solutions in a push to ratify U.S. laws and regulations governing the seas. Panetta became defense secretary in June 2011.

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Virginia Gives Detention Prevention Plan To Governor

A legislative plan that would protect Virginia residents from the warrantless detention many critics have charged is contained in a federal budget plan has been adopted by the legislature and forwarded to the governor.

“By overwhelming votes (37-1 and 96-4), members of both houses of the Virginia General Assembly now have expressed themselves in their unmistakable understanding of the inviolate protections of our civil rights under the constitutions of the United States and Virginia,” said state Delegate Bob Marshall, the sponsor of the bill.

“I urge Gov. [Bob] McDonnell to acknowledge this outpouring of grassroots and legislation support of HB 1160, and I urge him to add his signature to this vital protection of our sacred liberties as citizens of Virginia and the nation,” he said.

The target of the state plan is the National Defense Authorization Act for 2012, which was signed by Obama Dec. 31. 2011.

The Bill of Rights Defense Committee noted that during the first few weeks of 2012, at least six jurisdictions have enacted local resolutions opposing the military detention provisions of the NDAA.

Among the states that have begun addressing the issue, along with Virginia, are Arizona, Rhode Island, Maryland, Oklahoma, Tennessee and Washington.

OWS II: "This Spring, We'll See Action"

Leftist professor and activist Frances Fox Piven last week predicted the Occupy Wall Street movement is entering the phase where it “makes trouble” and will soon be taking action against banks and other institutions.

“You know, thesesuper structure of international agencies like the IMF, the World Trade Organization, the World Bank, the European Union is so highly developed they can actually function to provide the safeguards, the credibility, the infrabusiness, fence makes trouble, in the phase where it thr