Isi Leibler: Facing reality after Protective Edge
Most of us were bitterly frustrated that the Hamas terrorist regime was not removed in the course of Operation Protective Edge. Although defeated, it remains in power, and unless there is a diplomatic breakthrough, we must be prepared for the likelihood of a future conflict.Had Israel given up the Golan ...
Despite this, the reality is that the Israel Defense Forces performed superbly and achieved the declared objectives. It successfully neutralized the immediate threats by destroying the tunnels, and dramatically eroded the ability of Hamas to launch sophisticated missiles. Hamas failed to realize any of its demands, and was ultimately forced to accept the terms of the cease-fire as initially proposed by Egypt at the outset, which they had consistently rejected.
Israel can also be proud of the proven success of Iron Dome, the miraculous Israeli technological creation that undoubtedly saved countless lives.
In this context, those Israeli politicians and commentators who lament that we lost the war are not merely denigrating the achievements of the IDF and undermining the morale of the nation, they are also providing Hamas with credibility in their pathetic efforts to portray themselves as the victors.
It was because of the politicians on the Left and the various advocacy groups that supported them that Israel signed the Oslo Accords some 20 years ago and carried out the disengagement plan from Gaza and northern Samaria in 2005. But the Left, which was aided by pundits who essentially served as its mouthpiece, was unable to push through a Golan withdrawal; luckily, we were spared from what would have been a train wreck of unimaginable proportions.Elliott Abrams: Palestine in Sinai?
You would think that the Left would own up to its mistake. But no, rather than stop and think, the very same people have stayed the course, galloping toward the abyss. They have embraced Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas despite his lethal hold; they keep talking about withdrawing form Judea and Samaria; they keep insisting that more withdrawals would produce more security. It's hard to think of anything more reckless to say.
Several days ago news reports "revealed" a proposal by Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi to extend the territory of Gaza south into Sinai. According to the story, as Israel Army Radio carried it, the area to be added to Gaza is five times the size of the current Gaza. The idea is that this area would accommodate all the Palestinian "refugees," thus satisfying the demand for a "right of return." Palestine would consist of this new area and the current Gaza Strip, giving the Palestinians more territory than if the 1967 "borders" were restored.Britain's Hamas Appeal
The idea of expanding Gaza is not crazy, given how overcrowded the place is. In 2004, Israeli Maj. Gen. Giora Eiland, then national security adviser under Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, proposed that Gaza be enlarged. This would require taking land from Egypt, and Israel (under the Eiland plan) would have compensated Egypt with lands further east that would have permitted an automobile tunnel linking Egypt and Jordan. The Eiland plan never went anywhere in part because the Egyptians would not consider parting with one square inch of sovereign territory.
Although the Disasters Emergency Committee claims that its member bodies only work with "carefully vetted" local partners, it does not oversee these partnerships, and could not even provide a list of those "local partners" that will benefit from the money raised and transferred through Islamic Relief.
One of the "partners" in Gaza used by Islamic Relief's branches appears to be the Al-Falah Benevolent Society, which, according to the Meir Amit Intelligence and Terrorism Information Centre, is one of "Hamas's charitable societies."
Al-Falah is run by Ramadan Tamboura, whom the Ha'aretz newspaper describes as a "well-known Hamas figure".
13 years after 9/11, Obama follows in Bush's footsteps
Thirteen years after the 9/11 attacks on the Twin Towers in New York and on the Pentagon, U.S. President Barack Obama has revealed his strategy for fighting the extremist Islamic State (ISIS) Sunni terrorist group. Obama's plan coincided with the release of Apple's iPhone 6. It's hard to decide which created the bigger sensation: Apple's sixth, or Obama's first?14 Million Refugees Make the Levant Unmanageable
Obama was elected so that America wouldn't have to fight any more wars. At least, that was the dream of the 44th president.
Ahead of the 2008 presidential elections, it was clear to Obama that the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan had been failures, traumatic events. His aspiration was to end them as quickly as possible, bring the soldiers home and show the Muslim world that a new age had dawned between it and America. On the way, U.S.-Russian relations also got a "reboot," because then-President George W. Bush had, in the eyes of the world, led the U.S. into undesirable situations everywhere on the globe.
When Obama entered the White House in January 2009, he did everything short of singing "Kumbaya." Who was more worthy than he to be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize? And sooner rather than later.
There are always lunatics lurking in the crevices of Muslim politics prepared to proclaim a new caliphate; there isn't always a recruiting pool in the form of nearly 14 million displaced people (11 million Syrians, or half the country's population, and 2.8 million Iraqis, or a tenth of the country's population). When I wrote about the region's refugee disaster at Tablet in July ("Between the Settlers and Unsettlers, the One State Solution is On Our Doorstep") the going estimate was only 10 million. A new UN study, though, claims that half of Syrians are displaced. Many of them will have nothing to go back to. When people have nothing to lose, they fight to the death and inflict horrors on others.Undermining Justice: Israel-Hamas Cease-Fire Breaches International Law
That is what civilizational decline looks like in real time. The roots of the crisis were visible four years ago before the so-called Arab Spring beguiled the foreign policy wonks. Hundreds of thousands of displaced Syrian farmers already were living in tent camps around Syrian cities before the Syrian civil war began in April 2011. Israeli analysts knew this. In March 2011 Paul Rivlin of Tel Aviv University released a study of the collapse of Syrian agriculture, widely cited in Arab media but unmentioned in the English language press (except my essay on the topic). Most of what passes for political science treats peoples and politicians as if they were so many pieces on a fixed game board. This time the game board is shrinking and the pieces are falling off.
No authoritative system of law can allow or encourage accommodation between a proper national government and an unambiguously criminal organization. By definition, under pertinent rules, Hamas is an illegal organization.Where the Shadiest Players Find a Home
Even if an insurgent group claims the legal right to wage violent conflict for "self-determination" -- Hamas's argument -- the group does not have the right to use force against the innocent.
In no circumstances, under international law, are states permitted to characterize terrorists as "freedom fighters."
Under now-President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Turkey is funding Hamas, helping Iran evade sanctions, and harboring a financier tied to the 9/11 attacks. Is that how a “NATO ally” behaves?Report: Obama warns Turkey to be on same page as NATO and US
Unfortunately, it does not appear that Turkey will redress these problems any time soon. With Erdoğan’s ascent to presidency, and with his former foreign minister, Ahmet Davutoğlu, taking over as prime minister, the architects of Turkey’s dangerous foreign policies have consolidated power. This means that Turkey is more than likely to continue to drift from the Western orbit, and to resemble some of the more dangerous actors in the Middle East.
With a White House that appears disinclined to challenge its wayward NATO ally, it is unclear if there are other actors on the world stage with the will to challenge Turkey’s dangerous drift. Indeed, it is likely that Turkey will continue to serve as a hub for illicit actors for the foreseeable future.
The Taraf daily reported on Monday that Obama came to his meeting with Erdoğan last Friday with a comprehensive file on the threat of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) --which also calls itself the "Islamic State."Erdogan Compares Israel to Hitler, Says: They Will Drown in the Blood They Shed
Warning Erdoğan on the axis that Turkey is in, Obama reportedly told Erdoğan, “We would like to see you on the same page as NATO and the US.”
Throughout the Erdoğan-Obama meeting, the Turkish delegation was trying to defend Turkey's position, and at the end of the NATO summit Turkey had to join the coalition against ISIL, the Taraf report claimed.
Get a grip, There’s no grab!
Last week, the Civil Administration in Judea and Samaria declared that some 1,000 acres in the area of Gush Etzion was public (state) land. This step was taken in accordance with decisions of the Security Cabinet following the kidnapping and horrific murder of three boys three months ago in Gush Etzion.EU: Return to Gaza’s pre-war conditions not an option
As expected, the extreme left-wing NGOs in Israel, led by Peace Now, exploded with an intensive campaign against this step, and shortly thereafter, the US, the UN and certain European countries began to condemn the move and demanded that Israel repeal its decision.
In a malicious manner intended to throw sand in the eyes of the international community, and to blacken the name of Israel, Peace Now purposely misrepresented this step – which was simply the formal completion of a well-known process – as expropriation of land, and another example of “occupation, expulsion and theft.”
However, an accurate analysis of this declaration and its basis in law completely disproves the claim that Israel has taken over privately owned land. The opposite is actually true – this entire process, implemented by the government, of surveying and officially declaring land to be state land, is intended to ensure that no private property rights will be harmed and that new or expanded communities will be established only on land that belongs unequivocally to the sovereign power according to international law, and not to a private individual.
The EU and the Israeli government agree that “a return to the status quo ante is really not an option when it comes to Gaza,” he said. “Therefore we must pursue the dual objectives of, on the one hand, lifting the siege of Gaza, allowing for reconstruction of the area, and a return to some normalcy for the population there, while at the same time safeguarding Israel’s legitimate security issues.” That could be achieved by ensuring that Gaza terror groups such as Hamas cannot rearm, he said. Eventually, “the goal of disarmament” could be feasible, he added.Officials call for money to rebuild Gaza, but say donors wary of Hamas rule
The dual goals of rehabilitation and demilitarization should be pursued “in parallel and not sequentially,” Faaborg-Andersen said. The first step is for Israel and the Palestinians to start negotiating a long-term ceasefire in Cairo, which should happen “as soon as possible,” he said. “I understand that the Egyptian hosts might be sending out invitations very soon.”
In addition to the Egyptian-brokered talks, the EU wants to see the Palestinian Authority return to Gaza “in order to spearhead the reconstruction,” the ambassador said.
The United Nations and the Palestinian government called Tuesday for international donors to provide over $550 million in aid to help hundreds of thousands of Gazans affected by the summer’s war with Israel.Jill Biden: ‘Peace in Gaza’ or Israel?
But the deputy Palestinian prime minister warned international donors were hesitant to fund the reconstruction of the Gaza Strip so long as Hamas remains in control there and the specter of future wars looms.
The appeal came two weeks after Israel and Hamas ended 50 days of bloodshed that killed more than 2,100 people according to Gaza medical sources, and a month ahead of a donors’ conference in Cairo. Hamas says most of the dead are civilians, while Israel says half were fighters, many of them operating in populated areas.
Jill Biden, the wife of US Vice President Joe Biden, told a group of American Jewish women that she was praying for “lasting peace in Gaza.”Another Qawasmeh Hamas Member Arrested in Murder of 3 Israeli Teens
Jill Biden’s comments on Sunday, during a speech at the Jewish Federations of North America’s annual Lions of Judah conference in New York City, led some to wonder if she had meant to say “Israel” rather than “Gaza,” according to BuzzFeed.
Another Hamas suspect has been arrested in connection with the June 12 abduction and murder of three Israeli teens in Gush Etzion. Hebron resident Fares Qawasmeh, a 31-year-old doctor, is accused of being involved in planning the murder.Army opens criminal probe of IDF strike on Gaza beach that killed 4 kids and attack on UNRWA school
Qawasmeh was taken into custody by Palestinian Authority security forces, according to a report broadcast Tuesday on Israel’s Channel 10 television news.
The report was later confirmed in a post on the Twitter social networking site by Qatar-based senior Hamas official Hussam Badran. “The only crime Qawasmeh committed was to speak for Hamas at the victory celebrations for Gaza after the fighting against Israel,” Badran tweeted.
A number of local Arab residents aided the Qawasmeh family in carrying out the plot by hiding and sheltering the fugitives. Among them was Wael Qarameh, indicted by Israeli authorities in late August on charges of harboring a fugitive – Hebron resident Hussam Qawasmeh, who was indicted last week on multiple charges for masterminding the abduction and murder.
The IDF's Chief Military Prosecutor Maj.-Gen. Dani Efroni has opened two criminal investigations into actions by the military during the Gaza war, senior army sources said Wednesday.UN's Ban mulls investigation into attacks on UNRWA facilities during Gaza operation
The first investigation will examine events surrounding the military strike on a Gaza beach on July 16, in which four Palestinian kids were killed.
The second will look into the circumstances around an IDF strike on an UNRWA school in Gaza on July 24, in which 14 Palestinians were killed.
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon told the Arab-language daily Al Hayat that the global body is considering a separate investigation into the circumstances surrounding the attacks on the organization’s facilities and workers in the Gaza Strip during Operation Protective Edge.PreOccupied Territory: Ban Promises Completely Independent Smearing Of IDF (satire)
Ban is quoted as saying that an investigative committee of this nature – if and when it is needed – would only begin its work after the UN Human Rights Council probe, which is headed by Canadian jurist William Schabas, completes its mandate.
According to Al Hayat, Ban said the goal of the investigation would be to look into “the killing and wounding of United Nations personnel and the destruction of its facilities and to hold accountable those responsible, whoever they are.”
The UN secretary-general told Al Hayat that he had discussed the matter with Israeli officials.
United nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon called for the establishment of an independent inquiry into certain Israeli actions during the recent Gaza War, and assured his audience that the commission will independently reach anti-Israel conclusions.IDF opens criminal probe into 5 cases in wake of Gaza op
Ban announced the investigation into the killing of more than a dozen people and wounding of scores more, including UN personnel, in attacks on UN-run schools in the Gaza Strip. He reassured the international community that any evidence not consistent with a picture of a demonic, murderous, bloodthirsty Israel will be either downplayed or ignored by the committee.
Two weeks after the 50-day Israel-Hamas conflict ended, the Military Advocate General Corps has ordered an investigation into five cases, ranging from high-profile airstrikes to a simple case of alleged theft, a senior IDF officer said Wednesday. He said that thus far the IDF was unaware of any cases that might constitute a war crime.Defense minister makes unannounced visit to Azerbaijan
He said that a fact-finding team headed by Maj. Gen. Noam Tibon and staffed with officers with the rank of colonel and above is in the process of investigating 44 “exceptional incidents.” Of those, 12 have already been referred to the Military Advocate General’s office for a final decision, with seven cases closed, three pending, and two resulting in criminal investigations.
Three other cases, in which there was a prima facie “reasonable suspicion” of violations of the law, resulted in immediate investigations without further review.
Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon made an unannounced visit to Baku, Azerbaijan, on Wednesday, the first-ever visit by an Israeli defense minister to the central Asian nation.Israel Dismantles Access Ramp for Non-Muslims to Temple Mount
Ya’alon, in the country for two days, is to meet with top Azeri officials, including Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov and Defense Minister Zakir Hasanov, for discussions on strengthening Israel-Azeri bilateral relations and strategies for regional issues, the Israeli Defense Ministry said in a Wednesday statement.
The trip was only announced after Ya’alon had arrived.
Israel and Azerbaijan have long maintained cordial ties, which are sometimes a source of tension between Azerbaijan and its neighbor Iran.
Israel on Wednesday dismantled a newly erected wooden access ramp to Jerusalem's Temple Mount compound that would have increased access for non-Muslims but which angered Jordan, according to AFP.IDF kills Palestinian during overnight arrest raid in Ramallah
The half-built structure was erected by Israel in the midst of the Gaza conflict in early August, triggering outrage from the Jordanian government, which oversees Muslim sites in Jerusalem.
One Palestinian was killed and seven others were arrested during overnight raids carried out by the IDF in the West Bank on Wednesday.Fatah Official Tirawi: No Difference between Hamas Executions and ISIS Beheadings
An IDF unit sent to arrest a Hamas member in Ramallah encountered violent disturbances when approximately 50 Palestinians hurled rocks, firebombs, and burning tires, the army said. One of the rioters was seen throwing an explosive device at soldiers, according to the IDF Spokespersons Unit.
Soldiers opened fire at the suspect, striking him. The man later died of gunshot wounds.
Some of the people executed [by Hamas] were officers in the security agencies. Hamas says that they were spies. Did they place them on trial? Did they interrogate them? Where are their confessions? Or maybe they brought people who had interrogated Hamas members in the past, and executed them now. What justification can there be for this? According to what law did they execute these people? What is the difference between [Hamas] and Al-Zarqawi, not to mention ISIS? I don't want to mention ISIS, which beheads people. What is the difference between beheading people and executing them by gunfire? Aren't they both killers, regardless of the execution method, which we all denounce?
Palestinian and Egyptian Commentators Argue about Hamas Achievements in the Gaza War
'Israeli spies falsifying Egyptian history to show Jews built pyramids'
Theory states that foreign archaeologists, particularly from the Czech Republic, are secretly aiding the Jewish State by undertaking "espionage and counterfeiting of Egyptian history."White House denies Sotloff sold by moderate rebels
Israel is secretly infiltrating foreign archaeological teams in Egypt in a plot to falsify Egyptian history by showing that the Jews built the pyramids, an Egyptian researcher claimed this week.
Amir Gamal of the “Non-Stop Robberies” movement told Egypt’s Elaph newspaper that Israel is attempting to prove Jewish influences on Egypt’s Pharaonic Era by altering Egyptian history in favor of the Jews. According to Gamal, foreign archaeologists, particularly from the Czech Republic, are secretly aiding the Jewish State by undertaking “espionage and counterfeiting of Egyptian history."
Gamal told Elaph that Israel does not send its own Jewish archaeological teams to Egypt, because that would expose its covert plot. Instead, Israel sends missions to Egypt "under the guise of other nationalities," while making sure that the leaders of the foreign archaeological missions are Jewish.
The White House cast doubt Wednesday on allegations that a moderate rebel faction in Syria had sold the whereabouts of slain American journalist Steven Sotloff to the Islamic State jihadist organization prior to his capture.Kerry makes surprise Iraq visit to stump for anti-IS effort
“Based on the information that has been provided to me, I don’t believe that is accurate, but I do know at the same time that this is the subject of an ongoing FBI investigation,” White House spokesman Josh Earnest said at a news briefing. “They are looking into all aspects of this, including how Mr. Sotloff may have come into the hands of [IS].”
Earnest was responding to charges leveled Tuesday by Barak Barfi, a spokesman for the Sotloff family, who told CNN that other “so-called moderate” rebels at the border alerted Islamic State terrorists that Sotloff had crossed into the country, selling the tip for between $25,000 and $50,000.
Kerry landed in the Iraqi capital just two days after newly sworn-in Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi seated his top government ministers, a crucial step toward restoring stability in a nation where security has spiraled out of control since the beginning of the year.Report: Obama to Ask for Billions to Fight Islamic State
The unannounced trip marks the first high-level US meeting with al-Abadi since he become prime minister, and it aimed to symbolize the Obama administration’s support for Iraq nearly three years after US troops left the war-torn country. But it also signaled to al-Abadi, a Shiite Muslim, that the US was watching to make sure he gives Iraqi Sunnis more control over their local power structures and security forces, as promised.
President Barack Obama is preparing to ask Congress to pay for a multibillion-dollar plan to expand the military campaign against Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS) militants, an unnamed administration official told the Wall Street Journal / Live Mint website.Australia Warns of Danger from Homegrown Islamists
While the proposal hasn’t been made final and the total amount is still being calculated, it will likely be “in the billions of dollars,” reports the site, as Pentagon officials develop options for the president. Obama is scheduled to deliver a televised address to the nation at 9 p.m. Washington time on Wednesday to lay out his strategy to defeat the brutal group Islamic State, which has captured swaths of Syria and Iraq.
The administration has been under pressure from lawmakers to articulate a plan for dealing with IS, which has carried out a campaign of terror, including beheading two American journalists. The US has conducted more than 150 air strikes inside Iraq to help Iraqi and Kurdish forces roll back some of the Islamic State gains, according to the Pentagon.
The head of the Australian Security and Intelligence Organization (ASIO) warned on Tuesday of the threat to the country from Islamic extremists and homegrown fighters returning from Syria and Iraq.ISIL Stealing Upwards of $1 Million a Day to Fund Its Terror Regime
Speaking to Australia’s ABC network, director-general David Irvine warned he is considering raising Australia’s terror alert level to high, which indicates an attack on home soil is likely.
Irvine said the growing menace posed by Islamic extremists and homegrown fighters returning from Syria and Iraq means he must consider the move.
The United States’ top counterterrorism official warned that the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL or ISIS) is stealing some $1 million dollars a day to fund its operations and could have the ability to convince its American sympathizers to conduct terror strikes “here at home with no warning.”Russia and Iran Planning to Boost Economic Ties
Matthew Olsen, director of the U.S. National Counterterrorism Center, recently delivered a candid and at times surprising assessment of ISIL’s capabilities and threat, concluding that the group “poses a direct and significant threat to us,” according to a transcript of his remarks before the Brookings Institution.
As President Barack Obama prepares to delivery an address to the nation Wednesday evening about ISIL, Olsen warned in his speech that, “left unchecked, [ISIL] will seek to carry out attacks closer to home.”
ISIL already has recruited upwards of 10,000 extremist fighters, including some from America, and currently controls territories “similar in size to the UK,” according to Olsen, who discussed the ways in which ISIL funds its terrorist activities.
Russian officials have traveled to Iran's capital to boost economic ties between the two countries, The Associated Press (AP) reported on Tuesday.Iran Promises to Address IAEA Nuclear Concerns Despite Missed Deadline
Iran's Oil Minister Bijan Zanganeh and Alexander Novak, Minister of Energy of the Russian Federation, oversaw a meeting of businessmen in Tehran, calling on them to increase trade, according to the report.
Zanganeh said, "God willing, we will quickly increase the level of relations up to more than 10 times."
Iran said on Tuesday it would still address concerns about its nuclear program, even though it missed a deadline last month for providing information about its suspected atomic bomb research.Iranian Nuclear Chief Salehi: The West Seeks to Sabotage Our Nuclear Industry
Iran’s envoy to the International Atomic Energy Agency suggested his country had not fully implemented five nuclear transparency measures by Aug. 25, as agreed with the IAEA, in part because of the “complexity” of the issues involved.
Ali-Akbar Salehi: Unfortunately, the Western European countries and their well-known industries, which have a special status in [nuclear] industry, cooperated with America and the Zionist regime in the sabotaging of equipment.
Saudi Arabia's clerics condemn IS but preach intolerance
When Saudi Arabia's Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdulaziz Al al-Sheikh described Islamic State and al-Qaida as "kharijites" last month, he was casting them as the ultimate heretics of Muslim history, a sect that caused the faith's first and most traumatic schism.Saudi anti-Christian sweep prompts calls for US involvement
That sort of rhetoric aimed at expelling militants from the Muslim mainstream has grown increasingly common among top Saudi clerics in recent weeks as they work to counter an ideology that threatens their political allies in the Al Saud dynasty.
But while Saudi Arabia's official Wahhabi school of Sunni Islam attacks Islamists as heretical and "deviant", many of its most senior and popular clergy preach a doctrine that encourages intolerance against the very groups targeted by IS in Iraq.
The arch conservatives Abdulrahman al-Barrak and Nasser al-Omar, who has more than a million followers on Twitter, have accused Shi'ites of sowing "strife, corruption and destruction among Muslims."
Dozens of Christians arrested at a prayer meeting in Saudi Arabia need America's help, according to a key lawmaker who is pressing the State Department on their behalf.After Gaza war, Turkey snubs possible energy deals with Israel
Some 28 people were rounded up Friday by hard-line Islamists from the Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice in the home of an Indian national in the eastern Saudi city of Khafji, and their current situation is unknown, according to human rights advocates.
"Saudi Arabia is continuing the religious cleansing that has always been its official policy," Nina Shea, director of the Washington-based Hudson Institute’s Center for Religious Freedom, told FoxNews.com. "It is the only nation state in the world with the official policy of banning all churches. This is enforced even though there are over 2 million Christian foreign workers in that country. Those victimized are typically poor, from Asian and African countries with weak governments."
Turkey is unlikely to sign any energy deals with Israel for the construction of a gas pipeline to Turkey, because of a deepening political rift between the two countries over Israel's recent military operation in the Gaza Strip, Turkish Energy Minister Taner Yildiz said on Tuesday.PreOccupied Territory: Jurisdiction Dispute Over Jesus’s Passport Delays Second Coming (satire)
Turkey was once Israel's closest strategic ally in the region, but ties between the countries were severely damaged following the May 2010 interception by Israeli commandos of a Turkish boat carrying pro-Palestinian activists defying the Gaza blockade. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has been a strident critic of Israel's policies toward the Palestinians.
Israeli firms recently held fruitful talks with Turkish private companies and energy officials as part of a tentative rapproachment.
However, Operation Protective Edge undermined those efforts and infuriated Erdogan, who likened Israel's actions to those of Hitler's.
Jesus Christ, who had foretold his return after coming back to life after being crucified nearly two thousand years ago, attempted to enter Jerusalem yesterday to fulfill that promise, but was stymied when the Palestinian and Jordanian governments each protested that they, not Israel, should handle the official record of his arrival. Israel currently controls all of Jerusalem and considers the undivided city its capital. Jordan had control of the eastern sections, including the ancient Old City, between 1948 and 1967, while the Palestinians are engaged in an effort to oust Israel from all areas taken in 1967 and assert their political independence there. Processing Jesus’s passport would constitute a political and diplomatic coup almost on par with recognition of Palestine as a member state by the UN Security Council.
While the Palestinians and Jordanians agreed that Israel must not be allowed to demonstrate its jurisdiction over all of Jerusalem, each one insisted that its own ties to the city superseded the other’s, and that Jesus should therefore grant divine legitimacy to only that government’s claim. Although the Jordanian Arab legion captured and occupied the West Bank, including Jerusalem’s eastern neighborhoods, in the 1948 attempt to stamp out the nascent Israel, its annexation of the land was only recognized by three other countries. Nevertheless, Jordan often tries to assert a special privilege regarding Jerusalem, a privilege they hope to see endorsed by none other than the Lamb of God.