Monday, December 02, 2013
Disturbing imagery
Likewise, it’s not unwarranted to assume that had an Israeli head of state described any of Israel’s neighbors as subhuman, as vermin deserving extermination, Obama would be beside himself with vehement denunciation.Toddler wounded in Jerusalem rock attack released from hospital
Had Israel’s preeminent ruling party openly and with publicly sanctioned impunity threatened to abduct Palestinians or to rain rockets on peace-partners, the hue-and-cry from the White House would have been deafening and would have been followed by tangible and substantial retaliatory action.
Avigail Ben-Zion, the two-year-old toddler who was moderately wounded last Thursday when a rock was thrown at the car she was traveling in with her mother and siblings in Jerusalem's Armon Hanatziv neighborhood, was released from Hadassah Ein Kerem Medical Center on Sunday.Caught on Video: Arab Rock Ambush
The child, who suffered a head wound, spent the weekend receiving treatment in Hadassah's Pediatric Surgery Unit.
Four residents of the neighborhood of Sur Baher in east Jerusalem were arrested early Friday morning in connection to the case.
The event was caught on video by the man's car cam. This may be the first time such an attack is caught on video in real time, although rock attacks are common in Judea and Samaria, and have become regular occurences in Jerusalem as well. A large rock thrown into a car hurtling down a road can easily kill or maim the driver and passengers, or cause the driver to lose control of the car.PMW:
‘Palestinians threaten to end peace talks’
Peace talks between Israelis and Palestinians restarted in late July. Although they have continued out of the media spotlight, reports have mounted that that two sides have reached an impasse.PA Official: Jews 'Defile' Al-Aqsa (Temple Mount)
Last week, senior Palestinian official Nabil Shaath said negotiations with Israel have already failed, and that the prospect of freeing Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails is all that’s keeping the talks alive. Top negotiator Saeb Erekat told reporters that the world needs to get tough with Israel over its continued settlement building to ensure the remaining five months of talks won’t be wasted.
Ahmed Qureia, a former "prime minister" of the Palestinian Authority (PA) and a senior official in the Palestine Liberation Organization terrorist organization (PLO), claimed Sunday that "International involvement in Al-Quds (Jerusalem) enables Israel to continue its 'occupation', and for settlers to continue to defile some of Islam's holiest places."Jews who visit Temple Mount are "monkeys and pigs" - teacher on PA TV Live
Do American Jews Live in a Cocoon? Peter Beinart thinks so. He's wrong.
Beinart doesn’t stop there. Of Elie Wiesel’s statement about Jerusalem that “for the first time in history, Jews, Christians and Muslims all may freely worship at their shrines,” he writes bluntly, “Sadly, this is false.” On what grounds? Has Israel shut down a mosque or a church? Has it even intervened while the Islamic Waqf carts away archeological treasures from the Jewish Temple? No. The only basis for this claim is travel restrictions into Israel (and according to Israeli law, Jerusalem is in Israel) which affect Muslims coming from outside, particularly from the territories of the Palestinian Authority. Israel has been in control of a united Jerusalem for nearly five decades now. If it were an Israeli policy goal to prevent access to holy sites, this would have been uniformly implemented. For most of this period, however, access has been completely free. (h/t NormanF)A Month of Horror for Christians under Islam: September 2013
The same month that Obama tried to wage war on behalf of the jihadi rebels in Syria (citing "human rights" concerns), some of the war's worst atrocities were committed against that nation's Christian minority, most notably in Ma'loula, an ancient Christian region where the inhabitants spoke Aramaic, the language of Jesus.BBC amplification of organised anti-Israel delegitimising campaign
There, al-Qaeda-linked jihadis fired mortars and missiles into at least two ancient churches before looting them; some 80 Christians trying to defend their homes were killed. Others who could not flee were forced, on pain of death, to convert to Islam.
Promotion of the November 30th ‘Day of Rage’ events outside Israel has also been carried out by known anti-Israel campaigners such as Yael Kahn (no stranger to the BBC), Ben White writing on the Hamas-linked MEMO site and of course the flotilla-participating, Hamas-supporting Palestine Solidarity Campaign.The Guardian once again disguises the reality of unrecognized Bedouin “villages”
Hence, the BBC’s portrayal of these demonstrations as spontaneous protests initiated by Bedouin living in the Negev is – at best – a very partial representation of the facts. However, it can also be viewed as aiding and abetting a political campaign which now exploits the Bedouin issue for a much wider and older agenda of delegitimisation and that perception is reinforced by the fact that the BBC article links to an organised campaigning letter signed (at the click of a mouse on the PSC website) by a collection of known anti-Israel campaigners and former ‘celebs’ and published – naturally – in the Guardian.
Leaving aside the absurd idea that people who had till quite recent times led itinerant lives moving across vast distances of the Middle East with no fixed national identity can be now labeled “Palestinian Bedouin” like politically correct produce in an organic food co-op, the article (and letter) conjure up visions of camel-riding nomads being forced to fold their goat-skin tents and leave from vast stretches of Sahara-like dunes.Canadian PM affirms support for Israel, announces visit in January
The Guardian once again is trying to promote the idea that these are Bedouin living in little villages that are the equivalent of the quaint villages one sees in reruns of “Midsommer Murders”. The reality, however, is far different.
Harper, a staunch supporter of Israel, made the announcement at a JNF-KKL fundraising event in Toronto held in his honor Sunday evening, where it was also revealed that a bird sanctuary in the Hula Valley would be named after the prime minister.Anti-Israel Demonstrators Target JNF Event in Toronto
“I am honored by this particular gift…I value it [because] it is where it is. It is in that homeland of the Jewish people and that light of freedom and democracy in what is otherwise a region of darkness — the State of Israel,” Harper said in his opening remarks.
“These are dark days,” the prime minister went on, explaining that Ottawa and Jerusalem share common values but also common threats. (h/t Bob Knot)
Responding to the protests, JNF World Chairman Efi Stenzler said, "This is an incident which is part of a long-standing false campaign of de-legitimization that has targeted the State of Israel and the Jewish National Fund in particular. These and other actions will not deter the Jewish National Fund and its supporters around the world from continuing to represent the State of Israel and working to strengthen it.”Netanyahu gives pope his late father’s book on the Inquisition
Netanyahu presented a Spanish translation of the 1995 book, “The Origins of the Inquisition,” to Francis during their 25-minute closed-door meeting, as well as a Hanukkah menorah.Lighting up Africa with Israeli technology
Netanyahu’s father, Benzion Netanyahu, was an Israeli historian who died last year. A Zionist activist who opposed partitioning Palestine between Arabs and Jews, he was best known in academic circles for his research into the Catholic Church’s medieval inquisition against the Jews of Spain.
Enter Innovation: Africa, an Israeli organization that specializes in bringing power to the power-less in Africa. The group set up a solar energy system for the Kaliro School, which gave the kids not only the gift of light, but that of time as well; with the extra hours of light, the school was able to run evening programs, giving children greater opportunities to learn how to read and write.Volun-touring in Israel
It was just another day at the office for Sivan Ya’ari, founder and president of Innovation: Africa, which for the past five years has been bringing not only solar power, but also clean water, food and medical care to more than 500,000 people in Ethiopia, Tanzania, Malawi and Uganda.
The Israeli organization GoEco matches socially conscious tourists with ecological programs throughout the country, such as wildlife and desert conservation programs.Mekorot to improve Mexico’s water quality
Watch how eco-tourists in Israel gain a unique perspective on sustaining the land that is holy to so many people.
The first of its kind cooperation agreement between Mekorot Group and CONAGUA (the Mexican national water commission) was signed in the presence of President of Israel Shimon Peres, who is visiting Mexico, and the President of Mexico, Enrique Peña Nieto.‘Video games are good for kids’
“The choice of Mexico inspires pride and respect, and also represents reaffirmation of Mekorot’s global mobility in providing solutions for problems and crises, especially in light of the current global water crisis,” said CEO of Mekorot, Shimon Ben Hamo.
Video games are actually good for children, a new Israeli study has found, much to the dismay of (most) parents who automatically think of the violence inherent in games like Grand Theft Auto, Halo and Call of Duty.SiSense wins ‘Take the H.E.L.M.’ contest and its $250,000 prize
The research, done by The Center for Educational Technology, asserts that video games — even violent ones — are beneficial for children on a scale much bigger than originally thought. The claims are in contradiction to other studies that found that extended gaming led to depression, anxiety and stunted social development, not to mention the physical effects brought on by long hours of sitting. Some studies have also linked between video games and increased violent behavior in children, arguing that simulated violence leads to real-life violence.
SiSense, the Big Data Analytics Company, has announced that it is winner of the global “Take the H.E.L.M.” competition, along with its $250,000 prize. The win comes just days after SiSense CTO Eldad Farkash won the World Technology Award for his invention of In-Chip big data analytics. SiSense helps business users make sense of big data without the need for a data science team or expensive hardware to deploy. Its unique In-Chip technology can analyze 100X more data at 10x the speed of traditional in-memory solutions.Former intel agent discovers Jews in mass ‘Christian’ graves
Kszonzenice in 2004, fledgling guide and former secret service agent Yaki Gantz’s two worlds collided when he found a mass grave with 45 anonymous numbers written on a gravestone.Rare Century-Old Photos from the Oregon State University Archives, Part 2
After a short investigation he discovered that following a nearby mass murder in 1945, the local priest had gathered the 45 unidentified bodies and copied the numbers he found on their arms, which were carved on the gravestone.
Gantz turned to Yad Vashem and in a joint effort they were able to identity 19 of the Jewish victims buried in the mass grave.
We continue with more photos and original captions from the Oregon State University Archives. The captions provide a fascinating commentary on historical understanding of areas in the Holy Land a century ago, including a comment about "Jewish Zionists." The pictures are dated as "circa 1910."
