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Sunday, July 20, 2014

07/20 Links P2: Peace? Not at this street protest; Russell Brand Justifies Hamas Terrorism

From Ian:

Watchdog Group’s Massive Billboard Equates New York Times With Terror Group Hamas
A pro-Israel watchdog group equated The New York Times with terror group Hamas on a massive billboard banner which went up outside the famed newspaper’s newsroom on Friday.
“Hamas attacks Israel: Not Surprising”, the banner reads, above a picture of a missile. Underneath it says: “The New York Times attacks Israel: Also not surprising”, on top of an image of a pen.
“Stop skewing facts. Stop the key omissions. Stop the Anti-Israeli Bias”, the billboard concludes.
Michael Coren: Peace? Not at this street protest
“The Jews control the media, control the banks, control governments, control everything,” shouted the man in front of me, cheered on by a mob of men and women who quickly assembled around him.
“Will I condemn the murder of the three Israeli teens? Speak sense! They were killed in a car accident two weeks earlier and used by the Zionists to justify the holocaust on Gaza. Their families were part of the plot.” More cheering.
Welcome to the wonderful world of a Toronto protest against the Israeli response to Hamas and its killing of Jewish kids and firing of thousands of rockets into Israel.
Russell Brand Legitimizes Hamas Terrorism
Unlike those celebrities who are tweeting Free Palestine without explanation- add singer Selena Gomez to the list – Russell Brand – an English “comedian” most notable for being Katy Perry’s ex husband - has decided to put out a video explaining his thoughts in depth.
More like out of his depth.
4:22: Brand claiming news of the death of the three Israeli boys was deliberately held back and used to build up tension and conflict.
4:57: Brand again denying Hamas are a terrorist group and then speaking of those “powerful lobbying groups” representing Israel’s interests in American politics.



Demonstration against Israel in London
Today marches were held in cities throughout the world condemning Israeli actions in Gaza. As Dave Rich pointed out in a recent post on Left Foot Forward, people can be selective in their outrage.
And clearly many of those demonstrating had agendas which went far beyond wanting to save innocent lives in Gaza. Some posters asserted that Zionists are Nazis, deaths in Gaza a Holocaust.
Alone She Faced Them, One Brave Woman & Her Israeli Flag
Watch this video of the anti-Israel rally in Melbourne yesterday, and see how the ferals reacted when they spotted a woman bearing an Israeli flag running between the tramlines.
Meanwhile, the usual screeching was taking place:
UK Jews feel anti-Semitic backlash
Britain’s Jewish community has seen an almost unprecedented doubling of anti-Semitic incidents over the last few weeks, the Jewish Community Trust reported.
While incidents were not as violent as those on continental Europe, the CST advised Jewish leaders to ensure the community takes extra security precautions in the face of growing anti-Israel demonstrations.
Latest statistics indicate approximately 60 recorded incidents ranging from verbal abuse to physical attacks on buildings and people over the first two weeks of July and over half of which were attributable to the current situation.
Jewish Institutions Seek Protection After London, Paris Riots
Among the institutions where extra security have been stationed is the world-famous headquarters of the Lubavitch hassidic movement, 770 Eastern Parkway, in the Crown Heights section of Brooklyn. Located in a long-time high-crime area, directors of the institution are concerned that matters could get out of hand, and are checking all those seeking to enter the building.
Parts of central London were brought to a standstill on Saturday as thousands of pro-Palestinians marched in protest against Israel's offensive in Gaza, while in Paris a banned demonstration descended into violence.
Last Sunday, Muslim rioters surrounded Don Yitzchak Abarbanel Synagogue in the 11th arrondissement of Paris, and threw rocks into the house of worship. Large scale police forces were called to extricate the Jews.
French PM Defends Ban on Pro-Gaza Rally After Violence
The rally Saturday in a northern district of the French capital was initially peaceful, but scores of men later clashed with riot police, throwing stones and bottles at security forces who responded with tear gas, sending locals and tourists running for shelter.
Police – 17 of whom were injured – detained 44 people over the violence and on Sunday 19 of were still being held.
"What happened again yesterday in Paris – unacceptable unrest – justifies all the more the brave choice by the interior ministry to ban a demonstration," Prime Minister Manuel Valls said Sunday.
Jewish students extracted from Boston anti-Israel ‘die-in’
For the third time in eight days, Boston police were forced to intervene when a small group of student Israel supporters was swarmed by demonstrators screaming anti-Semitic epithets and initiating physical contact, said students involved in the incident.
The two-hour “die-in” on the Boston Common climaxed when protest leaders read the names of Palestinians killed in Gaza since the fighting started. Holding signs printed with each victim’s name and age, demonstrators fell to the concrete as each corresponding name was read.
Violent Protests in Tel Aviv, Haifa Over Ground Operation
As the war on Hamas terror wages on, another battle raged on Israel's streets Saturday night: a war of words.
Leftists and nationalists faced off in Tel Aviv and Haifa on Saturday night, screaming slogans and waving banners.
The leftist camp was stronger in Tel Aviv, according to Walla! News, where the protest was held under the name ""End the massacre in Gaza - enough for an attack on the Palestinian people."
About 300 people chanted slogans against the operation, screaming "the IDF is a terror organization," "the Occupation will kill us all," and "liberate Gaza!". Hundreds of nationalists held their own counter-demonstration, waving Israeli flags.
URGENT: Pro-Israel people who were attacked in Calgary need your help
Pro-Israel Jews and Christians were attacked by an angry mob yesterday at Calgary's city hall. Video footage shows this clearly:
In addition to the males, 2 females were taken to the ground and kicked by a group of men. They sustained injuries. The crowd also chanted "kill the Jews


Meshwar editor: Without Police, pro Israeli protesters would have been “massacred” in front of Palestine House
The demonstration and vigil, organized by the Jewish Defense League, for the three slain Israeli Yeshiva (Jewish religious school) students across the road from Palestine House on July 3, 2014 resulted in violence and physical injury to several participants.
Supporters of the Palestine House using wooden sticks attacked the Jewish and non Jewish protesters, injuring few, including one who was taken to hospital. Following Police investigation charges were laid against two of the pro Palestinian attackers.
Dr. Nazih Khatatba, editor of the Toronto-based Meshwar newspaper and a member of the Palestine House in Mississauga argued that situation was on verge of “massacre” had the Police not intervened in time with large forces.
American Pro-Terrorist Activist Casually Justifies Terrorism
This is probably the most casual explanation of why terrorism on civilians is acceptable…in fact so casual that I am almost convinced in signing up.
It is very clear who and what these people support and if I really have to spell it out to you, they support our deaths.
Antisemitic Pro-Hamas Rally In Berlin
On the 17th July 2014, a large group of anti-Semitic and Pro-Hamas Germans filled the streets by chanting Antisemitic slogans in Berlin.
The protesters shouted “Jews, Jews, cowardly pigs, come out and fight!”, while holding up pictures of the ultimate Jew hater and terrorist, Yasser Arafat
Sinn Féin Pulls Pro-Palesinian Stunt in Dublin Parliament
Sinn Féin, the political wing of the terrorist Provisional IRA, pulled a pro-Palestinian stunt in the Irish parliament, the Dáil, yesterday during which Gerry Adams, party leader and alleged former IRA leader, manoeuvred members of both government and opposition into standing for a minute’s silence as a show of solidarity with Gaza.
Backstreet Boys nix Israel shows
As Operation Protective Edge continued in the Gaza Strip, the Backstreet Boys on Sunday canceled their much-anticipated shows in Israel, adding that they had been “postponed” but not specifying new dates.
The band had originally planned to play just one show in Israel, on July 29, but added two more concerts, on July 30 and 31, after tickets to the first one were snapped up in under two hours.
But on Sunday morning, the band posted on its official Facebook page that the shows would be postponed, dashing their fans’ hopes that the Boys would play as planned.
Nicholas Kristof Targets Israel
Could Israel meet Kristof's proportionality test by just lobbing missiles back at Palestinian communities? It doesn't seem likely that he would offer his approval.
And his claim that Israel's "long-term interest lies in de-escalating" is also quite curious, because it takes two to de-escalate. What if Hamas doesn't want to de-escalate? What if they want to escalate instead, then what should Israel do? Kristof doesn't say.
What's clear is that Kristof's use of the term "proportionality" is quite meaningless, and essentially negates his assurance that Israel has a right to defend itself.
Kristof also makes the silly claim that Hamas has been de-emphasizing rocket strikes against Israel, seemingly oblivious to the fact that Hamas rockets are getting more numerous and bigger, with longer range and larger payloads.
Vox Corrects (Which is Good), But, Still...
Vox, whose motto is “Understand the News,” recently posted a brief article about the fight between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip. It’s titled “The Israel-Gaza Crisis explained in 11 facts.”
This is a pretty big error to have to correct. The author of the article, Zack Beauchamp, somehow got it into his head that there was a bridge between Gaza and the West Bank.
No, beachgoers are not watching Gaza airstrikes on giant screens
A fake “screenshot” of The Times of Israel’s homepage made social media rounds over the weekend, purportedly showing a report of Israel’s airstrikes on the Gaza Strip being screened on a Tel Aviv beach.
The headline on the supposed screenshot, dating from Thursday, July 17, reads “Tel-Aviv municipality to install giant screens on beach to watch IDF offensive in live.” The picture and text are reminiscent of controversial (and real) photos of Sderot residents sitting on a hilltop to watch the Israeli Air Force conduct air raids on the Strip.
The underline of the “story” reads: “Finally, IDF supporters will have the opportunity to enjoy their favorite game in an ideal environment. Hundreds of thousands of fans are expected to gather on the beach tonight and enjoy the warm summer evening while counting the F-16 strikes on the nearby coastal city of Gaza.”
What Did Channel 4′s Jon Snow Imply With This Tweet?
Jon Snow is the presenter of the UK’s Channel 4 flagship news program. After the tragic downing of Malaysia flight MH17 over Ukraine, he tweeted the following:
"Awful danger that the shooting down of flight MH17 will provide cover for an intensification of Israel's ground war in Gaza"
The shocking event in Ukraine has fueled the usual contemptible anti-Semitic conspiracy theories. It is highly unlikely that Jon Snow subscribes to these conspiracy theories even if he has demonstrated a particularly hostile attitude towards Israel. Even more reason, therefore, that he shouldn’t be giving oxygen to this sort of disgusting nonsense.
Sudan editor severely beaten after call for Israeli ties
Armed men raided the offices of a Sudanese newspaper on Saturday evening and severely beat the chief editor who had called for normalization of ties with Israel, a colleague said.
The violence against Osman Mirghani, chief editor of the Al-Tayar daily, was an unusual physical attack against a journalist in Sudan, although reporters regularly complain of censorship by the National Intelligence and Security Service.
Mirghani was admitted to Al-Zaytouna Hospital in downtown Khartoum after "they just started beating him in his head, in his leg, using the guns and the sticks," Faisal Mohamed Salih, an award-winning Sudanese journalist and press freedom advocate, told AFP. (h/t MtTB)
The Guardian moves Modi’in to Palestine
The Guardian published a letter on July 18th by an Israeli from Modi’in, a city in the center of the country where this writer also lives.
However, Modi’in is fully within Israel, west of the Green Line. (Within the greater Modi’in-Maccabim-Reut municipality, Maccabim is located in what’s known as no-man’s land, but Mr. Youngerwood does not live in Maccabim.)
The Best Headline. Ever
From the Jewish Telegraph July 19, 2014, via David Ha'ivri
"Their God changes the path of our Rockets in mid-air, said a terrorist"
Where are the anti-American demonstrations?
In a routine and typical operation yesterday a US drone killed 11 Taliban 'militants' in Pakistan. Pakistan is some 8000 miles from the nearest part of the USA and, as despicable as the Taliban are, they have never fired a single rocket at a US city. Nor has the Taliban yet managed to dig tunnels under the oceans so that their fighters can climb through to massacre civilians on US soil. But it was still the right thing for the USA to do as presumably most sensible people believe because the very little media coverage this type of operation gets in the West is universally positive.
So can anybody explain to me why, when Israel kills terrorists who are next to and within its own borders (and launching 200 rockets a day at civilians and coming through tunnels across the border to murder) the entire western world is in a frenzy and holding violent anti-Israel demonstrations (and PS to everybody reporting on the demonstrations they are NOT 'pro-Palestinian' - the people on those marches make it very clear their only concern is the same one as Hamas, i.e. the destruction of Israel). (h/t Bob Knot)
Israelis protest British “genocide” in Afghanistan [satire]
Ever since the US and UK invaded Afghanistan on the claim it was fighting “terrorism”, outraged Israelis have been protesting their slaughter of innocent Afghan women and children.
This is Britain’s fourth invasion of Afghanistan, having previously tried to conquer this land in 1839, 1878 and 1919, killing thousands of civilians each time.
The NATO operation has been widely denounced as disproportionate: thousands of innocent Afghan civilians have been killed since it began, as opposed to zero Western civilians. Britain says it will not apologise for the fact that, being 3,600 miles away from Afghanistan, its defences are good enough to prevent any civilian casualties in Britain. Since the start of the operation, Al Qaeda “terrorism” has been completely ineffective.
Iraqis, Syrians Sure Europeans To Protest On Their Behalf Any Day Now (satire)
Tens of thousands of human rights activists marched through various European cities such as London and Paris over the last week to decry Israel’s operation to end the rocket fire from the Gaza Strip, chanting anti-Israel slogans, burning Israeli flags, comparing Israel’s defensive measures to Nazi genocide, and threatening or attacking local Jews. The beleaguered people of Iraq and Syria are certain that if the people of Europe can get so worked up over a few hundred Palestinians killed over the course of several weeks, there is no question they will make a similar effort to preserve the rights and dignity of the 170,000 Syrians killed in that country’s three-year-old civil war and of the 9,500 Iraqis killed in sectarian strife in 2013 alone.
“The concern that these activists show for the people of Gaza must mean that they will hold even larger, more effective protests for our sake,” said Aleppo resident Fatma Jibril, whose home was destroyed by a Syrian Air Force barrel bomb, killing her entire family and leveling the neighborhood. “I can’t wait to see what European politicians do in the face of the hundreds of thousands of marchers demanding that our human rights be defended. That should happen soon, right?”