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Sunday, March 31, 2013

Sunday Links Part 1

From Ian:

Jihadis' Exploitation of Muslim Girls by Khaled Abu Toameh
What is disturbing is that many Arab and Islamic human rights organizations have remained silent about the crimes committed against Muslim women throughout the Arab and Muslim world. By contrast, these organizations are often quick to denounce Westerners for "insulting" Islam by publishing photos depicting the Prophet Mohamed.
If anyone is really insulting Islam, it those the Muslim fundamentalists and jihadis who show no respect for Muslim girls and treat them as sex slaves.
BBC turns political activists into “aid workers”
The misappropriation of terms such as “humanitarian organization”, “human rights” or “aid worker” is an unfortunately common practice in the circles of anti-Israel campaigners seeking to co-opt the publicly acceptable image afforded by such terms to their political campaigns. It is regrettable that the BBC compromises its own reputation and breaches editorial guidelines on accuracy and impartiality by engaging in the same practice.
The assault of female members of the convoy in Libya is horrific enough as it is: there is no need for the BBC to embellish the story by erroneously depicting the women and the group with which they were travelling as “aid workers”.
Palestinian imprisoned for Facebook 'Like'
A Palestinian man who clicked "Like" on a Facebook status criticizing a Palestinian Authority official has been sentenced to six months in prison.
Anas Ismail, 29, of Salfit, near Nablus, was found guilty of "libel and slander."
Hebron cleric accuses Israel of plotting to rebuild temple
A leading figure in the Muslim religious establishment said Israel has a “manifest” plan to rebuilt the Jewish Temple on the ruins of Al-Aqsa Mosque.
Sheikh Taysir Rajab al-Tamimi, who heads Hebron’s Sharia court, said in his Friday sermon that daily “intrusions” by Israeli MKs and Jewish leaders into the complex surrounding the holy Muslim site prove that such a plan exists, Arutz Sheva reported late Saturday.
Al Jazeera reporter attacked at Sakhnin Land Day march
At some point, pro-Assad protesters attacked an Al Jazeera reporter who was present at the scene, saying they resented the news network’s portrayal of the conflict in Syria. Other demonstrators tried to defend the reporter, and a brawl ensued, injuring three — among them an Israeli reporter. Women and children returned to their homes as MKs attempted to break up the violence.
Haniyeh in Cairo to Bemoan 'Israeli Truce Violations'
Hamas leader Ismail Haniya traveled to Cairo on Saturday to discuss "Israeli violations" of truce following Operation Pillar of Defense.
Last week, Hamas complained to Egypt that Israel was not keeping its end of the bargain after a rocket attack from the Gaza Strip led to Israel suspending part of the truce agreement by cutting access to fishing waters of the Kerem Shalom commercial crossing.
Potential Egyptian economic collapse on Israel’s doorstep
The Economist describes the current situation as:
Unemployment may be as high as 20%. The stock exchange this year has slumped by a tenth. Tourism, which used to account for 12% of Egypt’s GDP, has evaporated. Foreign investment has dried up. Foreign reserves have shrunk. Many of Egypt’s most dynamic businessmen have fled, fearing they will be arraigned for complicity with Mr Mubarak.
Acts of Torture Reveal True Nature Of Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood
During the clashes that erupted last Friday [March 22] between the Muslim Brotherhood and protesters in Mokattam, the Brotherhood arrested left-wing activist Kamal Khalil and detained him inside a mosque. He saw a number of demonstrators stripped of their clothes and brutally flogged in the mosque, to the point that most of them lost consciousness. Brotherhood members were using a big whip to strike their victims. Khalil asked the flogger [about it], who replied: “It’s a Sudanese whip. I soaked it in oil a while ago. … A single strike can cut through skin.”
Arrest warrant issued for ‘Egyptian Jon Stewart’
Popular TV satirist Bassem Youssef, whose show parodies Egyptian politics, targeted for allegedly insulting Islam and Morsi
Egypt’s state prosecutors ordered the arrest Saturday of a popular television satirist for allegedly insulting Islam and the country’s leader, in a move that government opponents say is aimed at silencing critics of Islamist President Mohammed Morsi.

Also:
"To see the NY Times gloss over this travesty of justice is journalism of the most amoral sort"

Here below is the letter Frimet submitted - and that was rejected at the New York Times. Please consider passing it along to your friends, particularly those friends who read the Times and fall victim to its highly selective presentation - over many years - of the realities of the conflict between the Arabs and Israel.

Ben Ehrenreich's article ["Is This Where the Third Intifada Will Start?"] is a brazen quest for confirmation of his preconceptions about the Palestinian Israeli conflict: politics blended with fantasy and embellished with every tear-jerking cliche in the book. Smiling, frolicking children; poetic "activists"; generous hostesses plying their delicacies at every turn. It is a bucolic scene that is frequently painted in anti-Israel publications. But how does the NY Times publish a piece that plays so fast and loose with fact and history?

Sadly, I am well-equipped to offer some corrections and details omitted by Ehrenreich.