Opinion Editorials, February 2010

AIPAC officials duplicated classified policy documents before returning to US government, IRmep

Today IRmep's Israel Lobby Archive publicly released on the Internet a declassified FBI investigation file into the American Israel Public Affairs Committee for espionage and theft of government property:
 
Document (PDF):  http://IRmep.org/ila/economy/FD302.pdf

News Release: http://www.cnbc.com/id/35237324
 
 
Washington -

Top officials of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee duplicated a stolen classified US government policy document before returning it under order of the US Trade Representative.  The newly released FBI form FD-302 is available for download at http://IRmep.org/ila/economy/FD302.pdf .
 
Testimony about AIPAC's executive director and top lobbyist reveals AIPAC duplicated the classified report "Probable Economic Effect of Providing Duty Free Treatment for U.S. Imports from Israel" after covertly receiving it from Israeli Minister of Economics Dan Halpern:
 
"REDACTED immediately called REDACTED at the USTR to make arrangements to return the document.  The report was subsequently returned to the USTR by a member of the AIPAC office staff.  Prior to returning this document, REDACTED asked to have a duplicate copy made so that the staff of the AIPAC could further examine the report....He stated that REDACTED retained the duplicate copy of the report and that the original report was returned to the USTR."
 
The classified 300 page report contained business confidential information and trade secrets provided by 76 American industry and worker groups lobbying against a bilateral intergovernmental managed trade pact with Israel. The fight pitted Monsanto, the U.S. Bromine Alliance, Sunkist Growers Inc., the American Farm Bureau and the AFL-CIO against the Israeli government, AIPAC, and the American Israel Chamber of Commerce and Industry.  After the trade deal passed, the US cumulative trade deficit with Israel grew to $71 billion; equivalent to 100,000 lost US jobs each year over the past decade.  The report is still considered so sensitive neither the USTR nor the International Trade Commission will release it under the Freedom of Information Act.
 
This warrants close public scrutiny according to IRmep director of research Grant Smith, "AIPAC is again pushing legislation that undermines American industries, workers, shippers, financial institutions and our most valuable trading partners.  These startling AIPAC testimonials to law enforcement officials, published online for the first time, reveal the subordination of US interests and our advice and consent democratic process of governance to the AIPAC and its foreign principals."
 
The Israel Lobby Archive, http://IRmep.org/ila is a unit of the Institute for Research: Middle Eastern Policy in Washington. The Archive digitizes declassified documents obtained through Freedom of Information Act filings with law enforcement, economic, diplomatic and intelligence agencies. IRmep is a Washington-based nonprofit that studies U.S. Middle East policy formulation.

 
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