Sunday links

From Ian:

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The European Left and Its Trouble With Jews

"Today, a sizable section of the European left has been reluctant to take a clear stand when anti-Zionism spills over into anti-Semitism. Beginning in the 1990s, many on the European left began to view the growing Muslim minorities in their countries as a new proletariat and the Palestinian cause as a recruiting mechanism. The issue of Palestine was particularly seductive for the children of immigrants, marooned between identities."

Malice, media bias, and the Cape Times

One of the strange paradoxes of our age is the unholy alliance between many self-designated Western social progressives and assorted tyrants, homophobes, xenophobes and anti-Semites in the Middle East.
"Three atrocities were examined: the Bulgarian bomb attack, the Toulouse shootings and the Fogel family murders (which took place in 2011). In brief, only the Bulgarian bomb attack was actually reported by the Cape Times while the other two were essentially ignored. Nevertheless, the paper did find space to present other either irrelevant or anti-Israel articles at the time these atrocities took place."

‘Whining’ About ‘Pathetic’ Rockets

“For instance, between 2006 and 2011, 44 Israelis were killed and 1,687 injured by Gaza rockets. These figures include many children, as terrorists often fire rockets when Israeli children are walking to school. More than one million Israelis live in range of rocket attack from Gaza.
What do Israel’s critics have to say about this?
Channel 4 News presenter Jon Snow describes the rockets thusly: “pretty pathetic things – nobody gets injured”. The Electronic Intifada’s Ali Abunimah complained only yesterday about Israelis “whining about rockets”. Other opponents of Israel have dismissed the rockets as mere “fireworks”, and sneered that their only effect is to unsettle the pets of a handful of Israeli families.”

CIF Watch: Ben White dreams that, by the “bloodshed and sweat of martyrs”, Palestine will be free!

BBC Watch: The BBC, History and Politics

Another object which appears on the website is a Canaanite bottle from around 2,000 BCE. It is described as coming from “Jericho, Palestine”, but of course the term Palestine did not come into use for a further two millennia until it was introduced by Hadrian in 135 CE.

Hezbollah crosses Syrian border with bloody assault on Assad's enemies
Shia fighters coming to the regime's aid have tipped the balance of power. Loveday Morris meets beleaguered rebels taking sanctuary a few kilometres from the border

Syrian rebels find Iranian cash in the wallets of Assad’s militiamen

Saudi authorities disperse anti-Assad protest in Mecca

Iran cancels parliamentary visit over EU demands to meet Sakharov Prize recipients
Official in Tehran says his country does not accept any preconditions

Iran Installs 3,000 Centrifuges, Works to Trade Oil With Asia to Circumvent Sanctions

"International intelligence officials say that Iran has installed nearly 3,000 centrifuges at a nuclear site called Fordo, located under a mountain and inside a military base near the holy city of Qum, the Washington Post reported."

Lebanon arrests two Malaysian suspected suicide bombers

On Thursday, Lebanon's Al-Joumhouria newspaper, quoting security sources, said the Malaysians were detained by army intelligence on charges of being al-Qaeda members.
Investigations revealed they were recruited into al-Qaeda by another Malaysian before being taken to Yemen where they met other members of the organisation.
Al-Joumhouria said that about two months ago, the two Malaysians had tried to enter Syria via Turkey on a jihadist mission to carry out suicide attacks.

Indonesia Arrests 11 People Suspected of Planning Terror Attack Against U.S. Embassy

Saudi Textbooks Incite Hate, Say Leaders in American Publishing

"A ninth-grade textbook published by the Ministry of Education states, “The Jews and the Christians are enemies of the believers, and they cannot approve of Muslims.” An eighth-grade textbook says, “The Apes are the people of the Sabbath, the Jews; and the Swine are the infidels of the communion of Jesus, the Christians.” These are just two examples of a long list of hate-filled passages."

'Hate content against religious minorities rampant in school textbooks across Pakistan'
Textbooks used in Pakistan's schools include factual errors and hate content, which fuels the increasing levels of intolerance and extremism in the society, according to education experts.

Israeli 5-in-1 tool for rescuers creates design buzz
An industrial design student’s nifty invention for disaster scenes garnered lots of attention at Milan Design Week.

Israel Daily Picture: Jerusalem Commemorates the Visit of the German Emperor 114 Years Ago
The Kaiser Arrives, and the Rabbis Turn Out. How Jerusalem's Jews Greeted the German Emperor in 1898