Thursday links

From Ian:

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Melanie Phillips: The guilty men behind the Arab Winter

"So now we can see the terrible results of western liberal hubris, the so-called Arab Spring so credulously and stupidly brought into being by Barack Obama, David Cameron and Nicolas Sarkozy. In Libya, the American ambassador and three colleagues have been murdered. In Egypt, the embassy has been sacked. In Yemen, the mob inflamed by Muslim Brotherhood incitement has today stormed the US embassy there."

The Palestinian Authority's sorry state

"The facts, however, consistently belie the accepted Palestinian cop-out. Israel is the indispensable crutch upon which the PA leans. Without Israel propping up the Ramallah-based economy, things there would be incalculably worse. Thus Israeli taxpayers foot the PA electricity bills. Ramallah’s arrears amount to a quarter of the Israel Electric Corporation’s deficit and the shortfall is borne by each and every Israeli household."

Palestinians call for protests to end Oslo Accords By KHALED ABU TOAMEH

Activists call for mass demonstrations in the West Bank on Friday to demand an end to the Oslo Accords, other agreements.

Did intelligence fears prompt Canada to cut Iran ties?

I believe Harper acted on new intelligence. But the warnings were likely more about the Iranian embassy activities in Canada than they were about the safety of our personnel abroad.
"Indeed, the sheer number of reasons given for the diplomatic break may mask the true one: Iran’s aggressive use of diplomatic cover to prepare guerrilla cells to attack in the west should Iran itself be attacked."

The Hidden Threat of an Iranian Nuclear Bomb

"This is where Keller’s argument completely fails. The whole premise of allowing Iran to obtain a nuclear weapon is based on the theory of mutually assured destruction (MAD): that Iran would never use a bomb against Israel because Israel would retaliate with its own nuclear weapons.
But if a suitcase bomb were to go off in Jerusalem, MAD simply does not work. Yes, Israel may suspect that the bomb came from Iran. But how can it know for sure? The bomb might, for instance, have been smuggled out of Russia."

MSNBC host: ‘Who’s More Dangerous, the Supreme Leader in Tehran or Netanyahu?’

Chris Stevens was a noble, empathetic man, say the murdered envoy’s Israeli friends

The US ambassador to Libya, who had served in Jerusalem, fell in love with Middle East when serving with the Peace Corps in Morocco in the 1980s

Cairo Encouraged Embassy Attack by Letting Previous Attackers Walk

Just two weeks ago, a Cairo court sentenced 76 people indicted over last September’s mob attack on Israel’s embassy in Cairo. The net result is that not a single person is going to jail over that attack, sending the clearest possible message that mobs can attack foreign embassies in Cairo with impunity. Yet no world leader has lodged even a pro forma protest over this decision.

MEMRI: Testing YouTube's 'Promotes Terrorism' Flagging Feature For Videos Of Osama Bin Laden, 9/11, Al-Qaeda – The Results: 58 Of 100 Remain Active

Blame Anyone but Hamas at UNRWA

"Mr. Turner, however, is evidently taking his cues from the Palestinian narrative. So enthralled is he by images of persecuted Palestinians and jackbooted Israelis that he seems incapable of objectively assessing the state of Gaza. How else can one explain his inability to not only hold Hamas to account, but to even acknowledge their existence in his piece?
Turner seems to suffer from bigotry of low expectations when it comes to the true masters of Gaza’s fate, the Palestinian people."

Hamas finance case can proceed against Arab Bank

US judge rules that Jordan-based bank can be held liable for holding Hamas funds by US citizen wounded in 2008 Hamas fire.

Cairo agrees to host Hamas headquarters, Arabic daily says
A year after leaving Damascus, Islamists reportedly find a new home

3 Cheers to Batsheva

"Once again, just over a week ago, the anti-Israel movement excelled itself in its disrespect for international culture and dialogue, whilst promoting a vision of hate. Rather then let the many concert goers watch the internationally acclaimed Israeli Batsheva Company perform, anti-Israel boycotters tried to ruin the enjoyment of everyone by protesting at the event."

Brad Pitt, IBM, and the Holocaust

Judea Pearl, Daniel Pearl's Dad, Wins "the Nobel Prize of Computer Science"

"It's a strange day to report this news. Still, I'm happy to report it: Judea Pearl, a UCLA professor, the father of Daniel Pearl, and a true gentleman, won the Turing Award, an award that many people call "the Nobel Prize of Computer Science."

New Israeli tactic makes deadly viruses commit suicide

“Vecoy offers a cunning new way to disarm viruses by luring them to attack microscopic, cell-like decoys. Once inside these traps, the viruses effectively commit suicide.
Livneh presented his invention to colleagues in 2010, when he represented Israel at the multinational program of the Singularity University, based at NASA’s Ames Research base in California. He explained that Vecoy technology can capture and neutralize a wide range of deadly viruses, including resistant strains for which there are no vaccinations or cures.”