6/26 Links Part 2: UNESCO Rewrites History, UK Jewish Patrol Protects Mosques

From Ian:

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Op-Ed: How the U.S. gains from Israel alliance

Naysayers suggest the alliance with Israel has not been cost-free for the United States, particularly in the Muslim and Arab world. But measured in empirical terms, Arab ties with the United States, at both the official and popular levels, have boomed in the past decade. Arabs are coming as students or visitors in record numbers; anti-American street protests have fallen dramatically since the start of the Iraq war in 2003; and defense cooperation with most Arab countries is closer than ever.
Just as important, public opinion in every Arab or predominantly Muslim country polled has turned sharply against al-Qaida, notwithstanding the tight U.S.-Israel connection. Finally, Israel has been at most a very marginal factor in all the recent Arab uprisings. Even the new Muslim Brotherhood government in Egypt is maintaining the peace treaty with Israel and decent working relations with Washington.

Douglas Murray: Lying and Getting Away With It

To study the history of extremist activity on UK campuses is to come to a number of irrevocable conclusions. Among them is the realization that there is a serious problem, and that British universities are breeding-grounds of the most appalling hatred against America, the UK, Israel, free-thinkers, "apostates" and religious and sexual minorities. It also spurs a realization that terrorism is never enough steps away from student Islamic societies as it is from, say student Labour Party clubs or any chosen sports society.

‘We’ve got to stand for what is right… We don’t worship at the altar of consensus’

In characteristically straightforward terms, Canada’s Foreign Minister John Baird explains why his country is so supportive of Israel, and why others aren’t

The woman Britain’s left loves to hate

The book chronicles her evolution from the one-time darling of the British left to one of its most hated figures – “she-devil of the Western world,” as Phillips puts it.
From her platform in Britain’s second-largest newspaper, The Daily Mail, she has become famous for stinging attacks on the establishment, accusing it of deliberately destroying the fabric of British life by promoting multiculturalism and denying the religious nature of Muslim terrorism. She is Israel’s staunchest defender in the British press, a global warming “denier” and an opponent of gay marriage.

IDF Captain Breaks the Silence on Smear Campaign

In an exclusive interview with Tazpit News Agency, Raz explained that he had had “enough with the nonsense that this organization [Breaking the Silence] represents.”
“Breaking the Silence is an immature and unprofessional organization,” he told Tazpit News Agency. “At the IDF we deal with many organizations that hold counter views, but they communicate with us – there is an open e-mail and phone exchange, and verification of issues that come up. Breaking the Silence does not engage in any of that and prevents the IDF from properly addressing any of their claims.”

Ex-Soldier: Since Jenin, We’ve Been Fighting for Our Names

The “Jenin, Jenin” law, which would defend IDF soldiers from slander, continues to make its way through Knesset. This week it gained the support of a former elite soldier who fought in the battles that sparked the vicious anti-Israel slander which ultimately led to the proposed law.

Yet Another Enemy of Israel Poised to Join US Foreign Policy Team

Robert Malley is so offensive, he was actually kicked off (despite the lipstick smear called “resignation”) the Obama election committee in 2008 for meeting with the terrorist organization Hamas, although he had been one of Obama’s closest advisors for Middle East issues until his affinity for Hamas became public.

Israel hits back at UNESCO in wake of condemnation

Israel has lambasted UNESCO over the passage of a Palestinian-sponsored resolution condemning Israel over its activities in Jerusalem, saying that such moves will eventually destroy the organization.
“This is a dark day for UNESCO, a day the organization will want to erase from its history as it demonstrates that it is acting outside the boundary of reality,” Israel’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

FBI’s bus ads taken down over Muslim/terrorist stereotyping

The 16 men in the ad are affiliated with extremist groups around the world. Seven are from African countries, four are from the Philippines, one each is from Malaysia and Chechnya, and three were born in the United States.

Dutch rabbi says it’s Israel’s fault he was beaten up

A spokeswoman for the Amsterdam police told JTA that police are investigating but are not certain the attack was anti-Semitic.
“Currently we are assuming it is an argument about traffic that got out of hand,” she said.

Jewish Patrol Group Aids Wary Muslim Community in London Borough

A local British chapter of the Jewish patrol group Shomrim have offered up their services to mosques in their community, in a sign of solidarity, the Hackney (UK) Gazette reported Monday.

Israel Tied for Second Most Educated Country

According to Canadian newspaper The Windsor Star, Canada was ranked the most educated country in the world, with 51 percent of its population aged 25-64 possessing a college or university degree. Tied for second place are Japan and Israel, both with 46 percent. The United States, with 42 percent of its population holding college degrees, was ranked third.

Threat of rocket barrage pushes Israel’s largest hospital underground

With the Syrian civil war threatening almost daily to spill over the border into Israel, there is a quiet tension in the air at Rambam Health Care Campus.
Northern Israel’s largest hospital was at the heart of a month-long Hezbollah rocket barrage during the bloody 2006 conflict with the Lebanese militia and would undoubtedly be in the thick of action again if the Syrian regime or its Hezbollah allies turned their weapons south.

Israeli researcher helps alcoholics stay on the wagon

If you know someone who’s suffering from alcohol or drug addiction, a little amnesia might be just the thing to get them back on the wagon, researchers at Tel Aviv University have shown.
“One of the main causes of relapse in alcoholics are memories linking objects and places connected to alcohol consumption, such as shops, liquor bottles, and of course the smell and taste of alcohol,” said Dr. Segev Barak of Tel Aviv University, who is leading a team studying ways to prevent recidivism in addicts. By “disengaging” the memories associated with alcohol, Segev’s team found, it was possible to significantly cut the return rate for alcoholics.

Prince Charles attends ceremonies for Kindertransport

Prince Charles hosted a reception in honor of the 75th anniversary of the Kindertransport and attended a ceremony honoring Britain’s outgoing chief rabbi.
Sunday’s Kindertransport reunion was likely the last large gathering of its kind due to the age of the survivors. Some 10,000 Jewish children from Nazi-occupied Europe entered Britain in 1938 during the Kindertransport rescue mission. The British Parliament agreed to waive immigration restrictions.

‘We will sing to the Nazis what we cannot say’

In a concentration camp designed by the Nazis to eradicate Jewish cultural life, among 120,000 of its inmates who would ultimately be murdered, a rising young musician named Rafael Schachter managed one of the miracles of the Holocaust.
Assembling hundreds of sick and hungry singers, he led them in 16 performances learned by rote from a single smuggled score of one of the most monumental and moving works of religious music — Giuseppe Verdi’s Requiem Mass.