Press for Conversion! (Issue # 66) Spring 20128

LinkLinkLinkLinkLinks ts ts ts ts to Amdocso Amdocso Amdocso Amdocso AmdocsAT&T has a close working relationshipwith another Israeli firm linked to thewarrantless-wiretapping spy scandal,namely Amdocs. (See pp.5-6.) AT&Tis Amdocs biggest customer. Also,when AT&T established an R&D inno-vation centre in Israel they set up shopon Amdocs’ Israeli premises inRa’anana. Managing their AT&TFoundry, which works with high-techstart-up companies, is Yigal Elbaz, “aLieutenant Colonel at the Israeli Re-serve Defense Force.”

AAAAAurum Vurum Vurum Vurum Vurum Venturenturenturenturentures MKI Ltes MKI Ltes MKI Ltes MKI Ltes MKI Ltd.d.d.d.d.Another link between AT&T and Am-docs is an Israeli investment firm calledAurum Ventures MKI. Bloomberg’sBusiness News website says “AurumVentures MKI Ltd. is a venture capitalinvestment arm of AT&T Inc.” Au-rum, which funds fledgling Israeli com-panies, says it is “the technology invest-ment arm of Morris Kahn,” the founderof Amdocs, and one of Israel’s richestmen.

Although Aurum says it “prefersto invest in life sciences and cleantechsectors,” it also invests in military- andsurveillance-related firms like ElcomTechnologies and Foxcom.

Elcom Technologies:Elcom manufactures radio frequencyand microwave technologies used inunmanned aerial vehicles, militarycommunications, radar and electronicwarfare equipment. Its products aremarketed in Israel by Elul Technolo-gies Ltd. which calls itself “Israel’s larg-est aerospace and defense business de-velopment and consulting company.”

Foxcom:This Israeli firm makes fibreoptic linksfor tactical communication systems, in-cluding military satellites. It says itsproducts are “used around the world onnumerous different military platforms.”

Foxcom got caught in a 2002scandal that landed US RepublicanCongressman Rob Ney behind bars forcorruption. Ney pled guilty to award-ing Foxcom a suspicious multi-milliondollar contract in exchange for cam-paign contributions and other gifts fromdisgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff. Is-rael’s Globes business paper describes

him as a “religiously observant man anda fervid support of Israel …suspectedof sending paramilitary equipment toIsraeli settlers in Betar Illit.” Foxcomthen paid Abramoff US$280,000 anddonated US$50,000 to his charity.

Here’s how former CIA officerPhilip Giraldi described the crime:

“Congressman Bob Ney…arrangeda noncompetitive bid for the Israelitelecommunications company Fox-com Wireless to install equipmentto improve cellphone reception inthe Capitol and House office build-ings…. Telecommunications secu-rity experts note that equipment thatcan be used to enhance or improvea signal can also be used to redirectthe phone conversation to anotherlocation for recording and analysis.The possibility that someone in theIsraeli Embassy might be listening tocongressmen’s private phone conver-sations is intriguing to say the least.”

ReferencesAT&Ten.wikipedia.org/wiki/AT%26T

“2010 Form 10-K, AT&T Inc.,” US SECwww.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/732717/000073271711000014/ex13.htm

Contracts to AT&T Inc.www.fedspending.org/fpds/search.php

Top 100 Defense Contractors, Gov’t Executivewww.govexec.com

Government Contracts USA Defense Dep’twww.governmentcontractswon.com

Virtual War: Knesset website crashes, Globes,October 26, 2000.www.globes.co.il/serveen/globes/docview.asp?did=447255

“AT&T Supports Israel Defense Forces as Kill-ing of Palestinians Continues,” Oct. 27, 2000.groups.yahoo.com/group/islampl/message/81

Shiri Habib-Valdhorn, “Amdocs, AT&T inaugurateIsrael innovation center,” Globes, June 16, 2011.www.globes.co.il/serveen/globes/docview.asp?did=1000654932

About uswww.aurum.co.il/aboutus.htm

Military Solutionswww.foxcom.com/markets/military-solutions

James Grimaldi, “House Suspends Hill TelecomLicense,” Washington Post, Sept. 28, 2006.www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/09/27/AR2006092701859.html

“The lobbyist, the US Representative, and theIsraeli company,” Globes, October 20, 2005.www.globes.co.il/serveen/globes/docview.asp?did=1000021551

Philip Giraldi, “The Spy Who Loves Us,” Ameri-can Conservative, June 2, 2008.www.informationclearinghouse.info/article20065.htm

BBBBBAE SyAE SyAE SyAE SyAE Systemsstemsstemsstemsstems

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BAE produces everything fromnuclear submarines and nu-clear weapons to handcuffs and

shackles used at Guantanamo Bay andin Saudi Arabia. And, BAE also churnsout artillery, missiles, torpedoes, battlevehicles, aerial drones, and even re-mote-controlled machine guns.

Easily the largest weaponsmanufacturer in Britain, BAE hasUS$38 billion in assets. It consistentlyranks among the world’s four largestwar profiteers, and was in second placein 2007, 2008 and 2009. Not too sur-prisingly, about 96% of BAE’s rev-enues come from military sales.

Of the US$64.7 billion in con-tracts that BAE had with the US fed-eral government between 2000 and2009, US$61 billion (95%) were withmilitary departments and agencies.During each of those years, BAE fig-ured among the Pentagon’s top 15 sup-pliers. And, the company ranked sev-enth among the top Pentagon contrac-tors for that decade.

BAE also supplies high-techcomponents for major US weapons sys-tems of the kind sold to Israel, includ-ing AH-64 “Apache” attack helicopters,and F-15 and F-16 warplanes. The Is-raeli Air Force used these aircraft whenattacking Lebanon in 2006, and Gazain 2008-2009. Between 1999 and 2009,the US “Government Contracts Won”database lists BAE Systems and its sub-sidiaries as having received 265 con-tracts, worth US$460 million for thesethree weapons systems alone.

The BAE equipment usedaboard Israeli F-15s includes “Head-Up Displays.” These transparent dis-plays of flight and weapons-controldata allow pilots to avoid looking downat cockpit instruments.

Israel was reported to have usedBAE’s “Suter” airborne network attacksystem to bomb Syria in 2007.

In 2005, BAE acquired United

Spring 2012 (Issue # 66) Press for Conversion! 9

Defense Industries (UDI), a major USweapons maker owned by The CarlyleGroup between 1997 and 2004. (Seepp.14-15.) After this US$4.2 billionacquisition, UDI became known as USCombat Systems and BAE formed itsLand & Armaments division. This BAEdivision designs, manufactures and pro-vides “integrated logistics supportthroughout the product life-cycle” forbattle vehicles, heavy artillery, navalweapons, missile launchers and muni-tions. Many of these BAE weaponssystems are now part of Israel’s arse-nal, including:

M113 Armoured Troop CarriersM88 Armoured Recovery VehiclesM109 155 mm “Doher” howitzersM110 203 mm howitzers

Defense Technology Corp., aUS-based firm owned by BAE, sup-plies CS tear gas to Israel’s police andmilitary which routinely use it againstPalestinian protesters. Deaths have re-sulted from using this kind of tear gas.For instance, Israel’s Haaretz newspa-per reported on New Year’s day 2011that Jawaher Abu Rahmah “died…aftershe was exposed to tear gas that wasshot by IDF [Israel Defense Forces] sol-diers to disperse the crowd of demon-strators against the separation wall” inthe West-Bank village of Bil’in. Herbrother “Bassem Abu Rahmah…waskilled by an extended-range tear gasprojectile fired at his chest by IDFsoldiers…on April 17, 2009.”

BAE’s Israel subsidiary, BAERokar International, manufactures threemain products:

(1) “Combat-proven” electronic war-

fare systems for warplanes and helicop-ters. Rokar is “the sole supplier of thesesystems to the Israeli Air Force.”

(2) Global positioning systems andguidance systems for space, air, landand naval platforms, as well as for rock-ets, smart munitions and projectiles.

(3) Armament control systems forfighter aircraft, helicopters and Un-manned Aerial Vehicles.

BAE is on the global teambuilding the F-35 warplane, which Is-rael has on order. BAE responsibilityis to design the aft fuselage, the hori-zontal and vertical tails, and the wing-fold mechanism for one variant of thisfighter/bomber. The F-35’s prime con-tractor is Lockheed Martin. (See table,“CPP Investments,” p.53.)

ReferencesBAE, Boycott Israel websitewww.boycott-israel.co.uk/business-links/118-bae

Group Balance Sheetbae-systems-investor-relations.production.investis.com/financial-information/balance-sheet.aspx

Top 100 Defense Contractors, Defense Newswww.defensenews.com

Contracts to BAE Systemswww.fedspending.org/fpds/search.php

Government Contracts USA Defense Dep’twww.governmentcontractswon.com

Top 100 Defense Contractors, Gov’t Executivewww.govexec.com

“Profiting from Occupation: UK & InternationalCompanies Complicit in Israeli War CrimesAgainst Palestinians,” Corporate Watch, 2009.corporateoccupation.files.wordpress.com/2010/02/palestine_cw_report.pdf

Land & Armamentswww.baesystems.com/Businesses/LandArmaments

Military equipment of Israelen.wikipedia.org/wiki/Military_equipment_of_Israel

“The Deadly Experiment – Israel`s Murderoustesting Ground for ‘Non-Lethal’ Weapons,”January 3, 2011.corporateoccupation.wordpress.com/2011/01/03/1080/

Amira Hass and Anshel Pfeffer, “Bil’in protesterdies after exposure to tear gas shot by IDF,”Haaretz, January 1, 2011.www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/bil-in-pro-tester-dies-after-exposure-to-tear-gas-shot-by-idf-1.334627

Electronic Solutions, Jerusalemwww.baesystems.com/WorldwideLocations/Regions/MiddleEast/Israel/Jerusalem/bae_facil_eis_jerusalem.html

EW and Support Equipmentwww.baesystems.com/ProductsServices/bae_prod_ew_support_equip.html

F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter (JSF), In-ternationalwww.airforce-technology.com/projects/jsf/

Doher 155 mm self-propelled howitzer (Israel),Jane’s Armour and Artillery, February 24, 2011.articles.janes.com/articles/Janes-Armour-and-Artillery/Doher-155-mm-self-propelled-howitzer-Israel.html

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