Wednesday, July 31, 2013
UN Watch: Why does Ken Roth keep blaming Egyptian abuses on Israel?
Weird that when Egypt's generals perpetrate abuses, Human Rights Watch's Ken Roth has the habit of injecting Israel into the discussion, attempting to implicate it by association.Richard Landes: Terrorist Chic in France, From the Jeu de Paume Exhibit to Al Durah to Mohamed Merah
To restore democracy in Egypt, says Roth, we must "not let Israel concerns stand in way." Yet the linked Washington Post editorial spoke of "peace with Israel." Roth changes the language to preserve his narrative of sinister "Israel concerns." Moreover, he omits the editorial's larger emphasis on policymakers' concern for "the [Egyptian] armed forces’ history as a U.S. ally":
How can the French, who know what Nazi occupation was like, compare their experience to that of Palestinians in the West Bank? How they could not notice that while the Nazis killed hundreds of thousands of civilians in occupied Europe as part of their deliberate policy of collective punishment, the Palestinians kill thousands of civilians as part of their “resistance”? How could they miss the difference between an “occupation” that kills 6 million Jews and one that produces a Palestinian population with the highest standard of living in the non-oil-rich Arab world? How can they glorify a movement that embraces and intensifies Nazi Jew-hatred? And why do they view Jews who attempt to protect themselves from that aggression through the eyes of those who foment hatred? How did such a profound moral disorientation occur, and why has it been elevated to the level of high art?Bill Seeks to Advance US Embassy Move to Jerusalem
The bill, H.R.. 2846, is the latest attempt to put pressure on the Obama administration to acknowledge Jerusalem as Israel's capital, a step the administration and past administrations have been unwilling to take.Two Hurt in Rock Attack on Bus in Jerusalem
According to The Hill, the bill was introduced on Friday, just a few days before Israel and the Palestinian Authority were set to resume peace talks in Washington.
A 15-year-old teen and a 40-year-old man were wounded on Tuesday evening in a rock attack on a bus in Jerusalem.Jihadists fire ‘US-made ballistic missile’ at Sinai security HQ
Arab terrorists hurled rocks at the bus as it was travelling from the Neve Yaakov neighborhood towards central Jerusalem.
Jihadists attacked the Egyptian security headquarters in northern Sinai ostensibly using an American-made ballistic missile, Egypt’s interior ministry said early Monday morning.Syrian Electronic Army Hijacks Thomson Reuters Twitter Account
In a statement posted on its official Facebook page, the ministry said the missile, which it said was made by the US, hit the third floor of the building in the city of el-Arish on Sunday evening, injuring three soldiers. Photos of the missile’s tail posted on the Facebook page reveal a small plaque reading “guided missile surface attack.” The missile was reportedly 168 centimeters (66 inches) long, 25 centimeters (10 inches) wide, and fired from “a great distance.”
In its latest attack on news outlets, the Syrian Electronic Army hijacked the Twitter account of Thomson Reuters news agency.Aleppo rebel religious committee forbids ‘colonial’ croissants
It started with this tweet late Monday afternoon, which I re-tweeted shortly thereafter in case it disappeared (and it has).
It was preceded by several other tweets containing political cartoons, which are captured here in screen shots. (Warning, they’re not exactly funny).
A sharia committee in the city issued a fatwa on Facebook prohibiting “Muslim women wearing makeup and tight clothes that reveal physical features from going out.”Report: Iran to supply Syria with $3.6 billion worth of oil
A fatwa issued by the Council of the United Judiciary, affiliated with the rebel Free Syrian Army, stipulated a year in jail for anyone not fasting during the holy month of Ramadan.
Iran and Syria have come to an agreement by which Tehran will supply Damascus with $3 billion worth of oil on loan, AFP reported Tuesday, citing Syria's official news agency SANA.Analysts predict Iran able to produce atom bomb by mid-2014
The regime of Syrian President Bashar Assad has seen oil production in the country dissipate as result of the civil war.
Iran is expected to achieve a "critical capability" to produce sufficient weapon-grade uranium by mid-2014, without being detected, the Institute for Science and International Security (ISIS) said in a report on Tuesday.Turkey Hopes 2013 Trade With Iran Will Reach $30 Billion, up 36% From 2012
According to the Washington-based think tank, Iran would achieve this capability by implementing its existing plans to install thousands more IR-1 centrifuges at its declared Natanz and Fordow centrifuge sites.
The announcement comes as the US threatens further economic sanctions on Iran, while NATO member Turkey has made it clear that it will continue, and even step up, trade with the Iranian regime.Bipartisan Letter Criticizes Turkish Officials’ Anti-Semitic Comments
Following a meeting with Iranian Ambassador to Turkey Ali Reza Bikdeli, Yazıcı said in a statement released by his office: “We want to carry the trading volume one step further. The two countries have great responsibilities and roles with regard to elevating our bilateral trading volume, which was $22 billion in 2012, to $30 billion in the forthcoming period.” The forecasted increase is greater than 36%.
Members of U.S. House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee have sent a bipartisan letter to Turkish President Abdullah Gül asking for the condemnation of recent anti-Semitic statements by Turkish officials.Prison, lashes for liberal Saudi web forum founder
The letter by Brad Schneider (D-IL), Randy Weber (R-TX), Lois Frankel (D-FL) and Mark Meadows (R-NC) was signed by 46 U.S. Representatives and noted remarks by Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan referring to Zionism as a “crime against humanity.”
The founder of a liberal-minded website in Saudi Arabia has been sentenced to seven years in prison and 600 lashes after angering Islamic authorities in the ultraconservative kingdom, a newspaper reported Tuesday.Serial Abusers Stand for UN 'Human Rights' Elections
Raif Badawi, through his website known as Free Saudi Liberals, had urged Saudis to share opinions about the role of religion in the country, which follows a strict form of Islam that includes harsh punishments for challenging customs.
The UN has announced that elections for 14 influential seats on its Human Rights Council will be held on November 12th, with the world body for the first time confirming that candidates include China, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Vietnam and other regimes criticized for widespread human rights abuses.Israeli Navy Installing System to Counter Yakhont Russian Anti-Ship Missile
Iran pulled out of the race after the July 9th revelation by UN Watch, a non-governmental human rights group based in Geneva, sparked outrage worldwide.
Israel’s Navy has begun installing a new defense system on its missile boats that would protect them from the feared Yakhont Russian anti-ship missile, Israel Hayom reported.An Inside Look: IDF Helps Palestinians Cross into Israel from Gaza
The Barak 8 medium-range missile is designed to intercept airborne threats, including enemy aircraft, unmanned aerial vehicles, anti-ship missiles and cruise missiles. “History has never seen ships capable of controlling territory as well as Israel’s Navy using the Barak 8 missile,” according to a source familiar with the weapon.
Major Tariq, a senior commander in the Coordination of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT), works in one of Israel's most sensitive areas. Stationed at the Erez Crossing – just steps away from Gaza – he and his soldiers face the constant threat of attacks from Hamas terrorists. Since 2005, Hamas has launched 8,000 rockets from Gaza at populated areas in Israel’s southern region.Original Schindler’s List goes unsold on eBay
Despite the danger, Maj. Tariq works every day to help Palestinians cross into Israel from Gaza. As a result of his cooperation with the Palestinian Authority – which also works with a division of COGAT in Judea and Samaria – about 400 Gazans travel into Israel each day through the Erez crossing.
An original list of names of 801 Jews rescued by German industrialist Oskar Schindler did not find a buyer on eBay.Dr. Oz at Yad Vashem: We can never forget
No one met the opening bid of $3 million for the 14-page list typed on onion skin paper. California collectors Gary Zimet and Eric Gazin had said when the auction was announced earlier this month that they expected the list to sell for about $5 million.
Though the list had no bids, more than half a million people viewed the auction on eBay.
Dr. Mehmet Oz, the famous TV doctor from the United States, and Rabbi Shmuley Boteach, both of whom have been spending time Israel, visited Yad Vashem on Tuesday.
The two men and their families were guided by Hanoch Teller through the Yad Vashem's Holocaust museum, the Hall of Names and the Children's Memorial. Following his visit, Oz told Israel Hayom that the museum helped him understand the dimensions of the Holocaust, and the horrific system the Nazis employed to carry out their plans. Oz said he was stunned at how the Nazis were able to come up with arguments to back their actions, leading the Jews to their deaths.
Oz said the lessons of the Holocaust must be remembered, so that history does not repeat itself.
