Thursday, November 20, 2014
Sarah Honig: The Perils of Peace
It’s a perplexing fact of our life: anything that remotely and vaguely resembles peace in Israel’s neighborhood is serially shattered once peace negotiations are kick-started. This is how it has invariably been – all the more emphatically so since the advent of Oslo.Mordechai Kedar: In This Struggle, Israel Can Prevail
According to this unique pattern, unequalled anywhere else, peace overtures are tantamount to harbingers of death and destruction.
Then, once the violence of peace somehow subsides, we briefly luxuriate in the lull of an impasse – the closest we ever get to calm.
But these rare respites inevitably rub do-gooder meddlers the wrong way both in the US and in the EU. With obsessive peevishness they begrudge us our breather. They summon summits, draw road maps, determine deadlines, weave tapestries, formulate fantasies and in short terminate the temporary time-outs.
It’s an inexorable rhythm. After each round of jibber-jabbering about peace comes the carnage.
Israel can withstand and overcome the current wave of violence, which is just another chapter in the struggle against Arab and Islamist hatred. But to do so, there are concrete steps that Israel should take - now.Amb. Prosor on CNN International - Jerusalem Terror Attack
First of all, Israel must say emphatically: the Palestinian Authority established on the basis of the Oslo Accords is an enemy entity, an enemy whose goal is establishing an Arab state in place of Israel, not alongside Israel, but on its ruins. That is the reason the Oslo Accords were violated so blatantly and thoroughly by the other side, resulting in them being declared null and void..
In addition, Israel must cease funding the PA on the basis of economic agreements derived from the Oslo Accords. There is no other country that funds an enemy entity, and there is no reason for Israel to be the only country that acts in such a delusional manner.
The government of Israel must condemn those among us who were instrumental in giving us the "New Middle East", even those who once held posts of high honor.
Jews bear the brunt for naive hatred of Israel
This is why Israel regards calls to withdraw from the West Bank as blithely naive. When the western media reports about Israel's continued building of Jewish settlements on the West Bank, it rarely presents Israel's position that no new settlements have been allowed since 1999 and that all construction since 2004 has been within pre-existing settlement boundaries. More than half the construction is in and around Jerusalem on land annexed by Israel after the 1967 war, when three Arab armies sought to obliterate Israel. This annexed territory has never been offered in negotiations for a two-state solution.Canadian Citizen Suffering ‘Enormous Brain Damage’ After He Was Struck by Meat Cleaver in Jerusalem Synagogue Atrocity
Israel's arguments are routinely greeted with eye-rolling cynicism, as if the Israelis are the bullies of the Middle East, rather than the only functional democracy in the region, the only place in the Middle East where Jews can live in safety, including a large ultra-orthodox Jewish community which opposes the state of Israel.
This moral relativism extends to endless rationalisations for the missteps by the Palestinians, the corruption, the internecine conflict, the state-sponsored racism, and the rocket attacks that have maintained a cycle of dysfunction.
The Palestinian cause evokes natural sympathy, but it would be helpful to see a glimmer of recognition that the Palestinians have long been poorly served by their own leaders and cynically used by the Muslim world as a strategic asset, where Palestinian suffering is required for the larger narrative that the world would be a better place if Israel ceased to exist.
Among the several people wounded in yesterday’s terrorist atrocity at a synagogue in Jerusalem’s Har Nof neighborhood was a Canadian citizen, named as Howie Chaim Rothman.Haredi Israelis Escort Hero Druze Police Officer to Burial (VIDEO)
Canadian broadcaster CBC reported that Rothman was “in a serious condition” from wounds sustained during the attack, in which which two Palestinian terrorists utilized knives, axes and a gun against terrified worshippers.
According to a relative speaking to Canada’s National Post, Rothman is suffering an “enormous amount of brain damage” after being struck in the head with a meat cleaver.
Thousands of Israelis from across the country, including the Haredi community, came to pay their respects to Druze police officer Zidan Saif, 30, who fell in the line of duty during Tuesday’s brutal Palestinian attack on a Jerusalem synagogue.Police: Massive weapons cache headed for east Jerusalem uncovered among Christmas decorations
Traffic police officer Saif was among the first responders to the Kehilat Bnei Torah synagogue in Har Nof, when two Palestinian terrorists stormed into the morning-prayer services shooting and stabbing worshipers with meat cleavers, an axe and gun. Saif diverted the attention of the terrorists to himself, engaging them in a gun battle and stopping them from continuing with the bloody massacre. He was shot in the head and succumbed to his wounds at Hadassah hospital on Tuesday night, Nov. 19.
Har Nof Rabbi Yehuda Breitkopf, who heads a kollel (institute for Torah study) on the street where the brutal attack on the synagogue occurred, told Tazpit News Agency that Sayif was a heroic example for all people.
“We have much to learn from the Druze community,” Breitkopf said. “The deep message that we can learn from this tragedy, is to act when someone’s life is in danger – exactly as Saif did.”
“Our mission as human beings is to take care of each other,” ,” Breitkopf added. ”The Druze community knows how to do this. We are very thankful for Saif’s actions – he saved many Jewish lives and he defended our people.”
Police said the seizure came after Jerusalem detectives ran an undercover investigation along with the tax and customs officials, during which they were able to track and seize two shipping containers which came to Ashdod by way of China. The fireworks were hidden among Christmas decorations inside the containers, which were intended for Arab residents of the largely Christian east Jerusalem neighborhood of Beit Hanina.Report: Israel Refuses to Return Har Nof Terrorists' Bodies
Last Tuesday, three of the suspects arrived at the Ashdod Port and claimed the containers, and then drove with them on trailers to a storehouse in Afula, where they planned to unload the merchandise. They were then arrested at the spot before unloading the containers, as was the owner of the storehouse.
Inside the containers police said they found 18,000 fireworks of the restricted 20mm variety, as well as 5,200 commando knives, 4,300 flashlights that can be modified into improvised Tasers, 5,500 Tasers, and 1,000 swords.
Israel's political leadership has decided not to return the bodies of Ghassan and Uday Abu al Jamal, the terrorists who carried out the massacre in the synagogue in Jerusalem's Har Nof neighborhood to their families, Channel 10 reports Wednesday night, as a deterrent against future terror attacks.After Murdering Jews in Jerusalem, PFLP Terrorists ‘Salute’ Anti-Israel Jewish Activists
This is the first time that the Israeli government has withheld bodies of the terrorists as a deterrent against future attacks. Terrorists normally are given funerals with their families in attendance, albeit usually with diminished fanfare and under tight security.
The attorney for the families of the terrorists asked during the debate held in the court to transfer the bodies of the terrorists to families so they can bury them. The State Attorney's Office allegedly objected, prompting the families to vow to take an appeal to the Jerusalem District Court.
A police representative who attended the hearing told Channel 10 that the State may arrange to bury the bodies in the end - but outside of Jerusalem, away from their families. Families may be banned from holding funeral services.
Following yesterday’s terrorist atrocity at a synagogue in the Har Nof neighborhood in Jerusalem, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine – the terrorist group which openly praised the attack and described the two assailants as “our fellow comrades in PFLP” – has issued a further statement urging all-out war against Israel, while simultaneously praising anti-Zionist Jews as “true and genuine voices for the struggle… We salute each and every one of them.”Yale Professor Claims Historical Justification for Jerusalem Terrorist Attack
The bloodcurdling declaration, attributed to PFLP Central Committee member Khalil Maqdesi, and distributed by a far left website named “Fightback! News,” describes yesterday’s attack as “a natural response to the ongoing racist policies and crimes of the occupation.”
Maqdesi’s statement is dominated by what is, in effect, a call for genocide against the Jewish nation in Israel. After affirming the centrality of “revolutionary violence,” Maqdesi says, “Occupiers and racists do not belong to the land of Palestine; there are, and must be, consequences and repercussions for the theft of our land and our rights.”
A Yale University professor attempted to rationalize the massacre of four Israeli rabbis by suggesting that the anger of the Palestinian terrorists was justified given the location of the terrorist attack.Fatah Official: Jerusalem Synagogue Attack - "Natural" Outcome of Israeli Actions
Hours after two Palestinian terrorists entered a Jewish place of prayer in Haf Nof, Israel with guns and knifes and proceeded to butcher innocent civilians, Ann McCoy, a lecturer in Design in the Yale School of Drama and Yale Repertory Theatre, took to the talkback section of a Huffington Post article on the Israeli response and offered her take.
“[T]he synagogue was built on the ruins of the Deir Yassin village where the entire village of Palestinians was massacred by the Israelis violence breeds violence....,” she alleged in a comment linked to her Facebook page. “[E]thnic cleansing produces long held resentments...”
Hamas proud of terror attacks, vows to continue
Excusing-And Celebrating-Savagery
In efforts to explain the savage, senseless butchery of the Jerusalem synagogue massacre, left-leaning commentators referred to “provocation” and a so-called “cycle of violence” involving both sides. Even the president of the United States strained to sound even-handed in the face of a shameless display of Islamist barbarity. “Too many Israelis have died; too many Palestinians have died,” he told the White House press pool. “At this difficult time I think it's important for both Palestinians and Israelis to try to work together to lower tensions and reject violence." In other words, he suggested that Israelis and Palestinians, Jews and Muslims, had played somehow comparable roles in fomenting those tensions and both needed to move more forcefully to “reject violence.”In rare move, UN Security Council condemns Jerusalem terror attack
But when, Mr. President, has Israel ever failed to “reject violence” against Palestinians who remain peaceful?
No political or religious leaders in the Jewish state ever applauded, justified or excused brutal attacks against peaceful Palestinians – like the universally denounced murder of an East Jerusalem teenager last summer by two mentally deranged Israelis who have been arrested and face potential life imprisonment (there is no death penalty in Israel, even for terrorism).
In the statement, the council emphasized "the importance of all statements condemning the attack and condemning all acts of violence" and encouraged "Israeli and Palestinian leaders and citizens to work together to lower tension, reject violence, avoid all provocations and seek a path toward peace."Pope Francis condemns Palestinian violence
The council called all forms of terrorism "criminal and unjustifiable, regardless of its motivation." It also reminded states that "they must ensure that measures taken to combat terrorism comply with all their obligations under international law."
Israeli Ambassador to the U.N. Ron Prosor welcomed the unusual Security Council condemnation of a Palestinian terrorist attack, but added, "It is too bad that only after Israelis are massacred during prayer that the Security Council remembers to break its silence about Palestinian violence, despite repeated warnings from us."
“I follow with great concern the alarming increase in tension in Jerusalem and other areas of the Holy Land, with unacceptable episodes of violence that do not even spare places of worship,” the Pope said on Wednesday at the Vatican.Talk is Cheap: U.S. Response to Jerusalem Synagogue Attack Disappoints
The Pontiff sent special prayers to all the victims of the situation, as well as those suffering its consequences. He also appealed to the parties involved in the attack to put an end to the spiral of hate and violence, and rather, to make decisions for reconciliation and peace.
Francis also took the opportunity to thank the Lord for allowing Catholics to practice their religion in peace, without violence such as that witnessed in Jerusalem on Tuesday.
“It offers a good opportunity to thank the Lord for the gift of so many people who, in monasteries and hermitages, devote themselves to God in prayer and constructive silence, acknowledging the primacy due solely to Him," the Pope said. "Let us thank the Lord for the witness of cloistered life and ensure that they do not lack our spiritual and material support in order to fulfill their important mission."
Secretary of State John Kerry condemned the Nov. 18 slaughter of four Jews in a synagogue in Jerusalem’s Har Nof neighborhood. He even acknowledged that it was “a pure result of incitement, of calls for days of rage” by the Palestinian leadership. Indeed it was. It’s too bad it took a massacre to get Secretary Kerry to admit that. If only he had spoken out against Palestinian incitement weeks or months ago.Following Jerusalem Synagogue Attack, Louisiana Governor Calls for ‘Extermination’ of Terrorists
But “speaking out” is not enough. Bland verbal condemnations of incitement don’t make any difference. Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas and has colleagues don’t take America’s words seriously. There have to be actions. The Palestinian leaders need to see that there will be real consequences for their incitement.
Secretary Kerry said that Palestinian leaders “must begin to take serious steps to restrain any kind of incitement that comes from their language, from other people’s language, and exhibit the kind of leadership that is necessary to put this region on a different path.”
But what if they don’t? What’s he going to do about it?
Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal on Tuesday called for terrorists to be annihilated following the murderous Palestinian attack on a Jerusalem synagogue in which five people were killed.Bahraini Moral Clarity and the ‘Al-Aqsa in Danger’ Myth
“Our hearts and prayers are with the victims and their families after this evil attack on a place of worship,” Jindal wrote on Twitter. “An attack on a synagogue shows that there are no bounds for terrorists. These are people depraved of any humanity in their hearts, and they must not only be stopped, they must be exterminated.”
The most surprising response to yesterday’s deadly attack on worshippers at a Jerusalem synagogue came from the Bahraini foreign minister. “It is forbidden to react to the crimes of the Israeli occupation against our brothers in Palestine by killing innocents in a house of prayer,” Khalid bin Ahmed Al Khalifa reportedly wrote on his Arabic-language Twitter feed. “Those who will pay the price for the crime of killing innocents in a Jewish synagogue and for welcoming the crime are the Palestinian people.”Muslim, Christian, Jewish leaders unite to condemn jihadi violence
For a senior Arab official to publicly condemn the killing of Jews by Muslims at all–much less with such moral clarity, devoid of any attempt to create a false equivalence to Israeli “crimes–is so unusual that it cries out for explanation. And the most likely explanation lies in the violence that has swept the Middle East in recent years. In a world where Muslim innocents are being killed in houses of prayer on a regular basis by fellow Muslims, mosques in Israel and the West Bank–including Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa Mosque–remain among the safest places in the Mideast for Muslims to pray. And the Arab world’s pragmatic axis, of which Bahrain is part, has no interest in seeing that change.
Senior Muslim, Christian and Jewish leaders condemned violence by jihadi militants such as the Islamic State group at a Saudi-backed conference in Austria on Wednesday, in a rare display of interfaith unity aimed at promoting tolerance and diversity.PA said to bar officials from talking about synagogue attack
Islamic State has caused international alarm by capturing large expanses of Iraq and Syria, declaring a Sunni "caliphate" straddling its borders, and massacring those it deems apostates and infidel, such as Shiite Muslims and Christians.
"Some organizations that are affiliated with Islam are perpetrating some actions in the name of jihad. This is not Islam at all," said Abdullah bin Abdulmuhsen Al Turki, secretary-general of the Muslim World League.
The PA leadership is trying to avoid embarrassment with the US, which is seeking to calm tensions following the attack in which two Palestinians killed four Jewish worshipers and a Druze Israeli policeman, the source told the paper.British MPs Justify Palestinian Terrorism
PA officials canceled numerous scheduled appearances in the media since Tuesday morning’s attack, the source added.
US Secretary of State John Kerry not only condemned the gruesome killing, but also charged that it was a direct result of incitement in the Palestinian media.
Warsi was not the only MP to cause a firestorm with her comments. British lawmaker and MP David Ward, similarly, said that while the massacre was "sickening madness," the finger of blame should be pointed at Israel itself - and the international community for its inaction against it.Israeli Minister Naftali Bennett Explains Why BBC Doesn’t Want to Show Pictures of Murdered Jews
Ward is no stranger to controversy. He has previously been suspended from the Liberal Democrat party following remarks about Israel and the Jews, and a tweet in the midst of Operation Protective Edge this summer caused outrage after he admitted he could identify with Hamas.
In July 2013 he posted a tweet claiming "the Zionists are losing," branding Israel an "apartheid" state and gleefully predicting the Jewish state's demise.
The previous January he drew widespread condemnation, after accusing "the Jews" of "inflicting atrocities on Palestinians" and comparing Israel to Nazi Germany on the eve of Holocaust Memorial Day.
Bennett charged that PA President Mahmoud Abbas, “…himself, incites, tells the Arabs, ‘take arms, fight the Jews…’” and then held up a photo of a victim, laying dead on the floor of the synagogue, still wrapped in his prayer shawl and leather straps of his phylacteries (see photo).New York Times Suppresses Kerry Condemnation of Palestinian Incitement
The presenter immediately broke in, saying, “…sorry, we don’t want to actually see that picture… please take that down.”
On his Facebook page today, Bennett posted a video which, he said, explained the BBC’s objection to the display of images of the atrocity. The video featured Tom Gross, a pro-Israel media analyst, pointing out on Israeli television that during the war in Gaza over the summer, the BBC “showed pictures of dead Palestinians day after day, hour after hour.”
Gross continued: “There is a kind of unspoken policy at the BBC that when Palestinians are the victims, they show the pictures in their bloodiest form, but when Jews or Israelis are the victims, they don’t want to see any pictures.”
Apparently, though, even that was too much. At around 9 p.m., the story was finally scrubbed of any reference to Kerry’s remarks. A quote by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu saying the attack was “the direct result of the incitement” by Palestinian leaders was likewise cut. So was a passage suggesting that Abbas denounced the attack only as a result of Kerry’s demand for Palestinian condemnation.CBS News Fails, Fox News Shows Palestinian Joy at Terror
By the time the paper went to print, the word “Kerry” didn’t appear in a single Mideast news story. The word “incitement” appeared twice — in both instances, it was a reference to Mahmoud Abbas’s allegation that Israel is supposedly guilty of incitement against the al Aqsa mosque, a holy Muslim shrine built on the holiest site in Judaism.
Clearly, Palestinian incitement, and Mahmoud Abbas’s share of responsibility for ongoing strife, do not fit the newspaper’s script about the Arab-Israeli conflict. And so the newspaper sculpted and trimmed and shaped, fall what may onto the cutting room floor. It is another reminder that readers hoping to be exposed to the full assortment of views about the Arab-Israeli conflict — even the full assortment of the US administration’s views, never mind those that are even more skeptical and critical of Palestinian behavior — need to look elsewhere.
IsraellyCool: Video: Hanan Ashrawi Spews Hate Paid For By Your Taxes
See if you can make it through the whole thing: I was gagging after her epic blame everyone but the terrorists opening.
That tour de force performance by Hanan Ashrawi is brought to you by these fine sponsors!
And here are the details of how much money Hanan’s organisation Miftah (because she’s the head honcho) pocketed from the taxpayers of western nations.
Donars highlighted Just 2013 contributions Miftah financial records FS-2013-Final
So there you have it, $733,828 from Britain (the largest donor for Hanan), the US, Norway, Ireland and of course, the UN (which is funded by all of the above as well).
Last year Elder of Zion caught Miftah publishing revolting Jew hating blood libels. Once exposed and translated by MEMRI, of course, they took it down and tried to cover it up.
Netanyahu on discrimination of Israeli-Arabs: An entire community should not be stigmatized
Arab Israelis must not be discriminated against because of the violent actions of a small minority, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Thursday as violence by some Israeli and east Jerusalem Arabs is straining ties between Jews and Arabs in the country.Bennett: 99.9% of Israeli Arabs are Loyal Citizens
Netanyahu's comments came a day after Ashkelon Mayor Itamar Shimoni said he would stop the city’s employment of Arab workers doing renovation to bomb shelters in local daycare centers.
"We should not discriminate against an entire public because of a small minority that is violent and militant," he said. "The vast majority of Israeli-Arab citizens are law-abiding and we are acting resolutely against those who break the law," he added. Netanyahu said that the “Jewish state” bill that he will bring to the cabinet on Sunday will enshrine full equality under the law to all Israeli citizens without regard to race, religion or gender, as well as ensuring the identity of Israel as the national home of the Jewish people.
“There is no contradiction between the two things, and we will not allow the undermining of these two principles,” the prime minister said.
Economy Minister and Jewish Home Chairman Naftali Bennett delivered a speech at an industry conference in Eilat Thursday morning. In the speech, he referred to Ashkelon mayor Itamar Shimoni's decision to temporarily stop the employment of Arab Israeli construction workers.IDF identifies four rocket launch tests from Gaza into sea in past 24 hours
Shimoni cited security concerns for his decision, amid continued tensions and a series of recent terrorist attacks, including Tuesday’s brutal attack in a Jerusalem synagogue.
"We are going through a difficult time. There is a wave of attacks, and no one can guarantee that that wave is over," Bennett opened his speech. "We are working every day until late at night, including yesterday, to combat terrorism. But you have to know 99.9% of Arab citizens are loyal to the State of Israel. It is only a very small minority acting out against."
"Therefore, the policy of the government of Israel should be a tough hand against terrorists, but extending a hand of embrace to faithful citizens. The hard line I wield against terrorists in the Cabinet will continue with new efforts in light of the security situation. But in my job as Economy Minister, I will not permit harm against any employee on the basis of religion or race. Something like that will not happen in Israel."
For the fourth time in 24 hours a rocket was launched from the Gaza Strip into the Mediterranean Sea, the IDF spokesperson said.Obama administration torpedoes bid to free Pollard
According to the IDF, the launches suggest that “"Gaza terrorists are experimenting in order to increase rocket launching capabilities."
Navy officials have said that Hamas fires rockets into the sea every few days as part of an ongoing project to upgrade their weapons. The launches are meant to test out a number of different projectile models.
A U.S. Justice Department parole board has denied a request to free imprisoned Israeli spy Jonathan Pollard, according to the Committee to Free Jonathan Pollard.Aide to Arab MK: We'll slaughter 50 Jews at soccer game
Pollard recently submitted a quiet request to be released under restricted conditions. However, American officials rejected the request, saying that freeing Pollard at this time would "constitute contempt for the severity of the offense and promote a lack of respect for the law."
Pollard, 60, was arrested by U.S. authorities in 1985 and later sentenced to life in prison. In recent years, numerous former U.S. government officials -- including former Secretaries of State Henry Kissinger and George Schultz and former CIA director James Woolsey -- have openly and unequivocally called for Pollard's release, saying his punishment was disproportionate for the crime he committed, of spying for a friendly country.
Last March, Pollard's wife, Esther Pollard, personally appealed to U.S. President Barack Obama to free her husband.
Knesset Security Chief Yosef Griff on Wednesday revoked the entry permit to the Knesset for an aide to Arab MK Masud Ganaim (Ra'am-Ta'al).Iranian Spy Reaches Plea Deal, Will Serve 7-8 Years in Israeli Prison
Khaled Bashir, Ganaim's parliamentary aid, was overheard in conversation recently by a Knesset security guard saying: "We'll slaughter 50 Jews" at the soccer game next Sunday between Beitar Jerusalem and Bnei Sakhnin.
The security guard quickly reported Bashir's comments to the police and to Griff, who summoned the two for a hearing and consulted with Knesset legal adviser Eyal Yanon. It was decided to temporarily revoke Bashir's entrance permit to the Knesset.
Ali Mansouri, 58, an Iranian national arrested more than a year ago on suspicions of spying for Iran against Israel, will confess to the charges against him after initially denying them and will be sentenced to a prison term of seven to eight years. Mansouri’s plea deal will be presented to the Lod District Court in central Israel.IDF Blog: Youth Movement Affiliated with Hezbollah Spreads Messages of Violence
In October 2013, Mansouri was indicted on charges of spying for Iran. When he was arrested, Israeli authorities recovered many photographs of various Israeli sites, including Ben-Gurion International Airport, the U.S. Embassy in Tel Aviv, and several defense-related sites.
In 1982, a new terrorist organization was founded in southern Lebanon. Hezbollah, literally meaning “Party of God”, is behind numerous terrorist attacks including suicide bombings and rocket launchings. Equally as dangerous is the way Hezbollah educates Lebanese youth in accordance with the organization’s interests.Former PA Minister denies PMW documentation of incitement in textbooks
Since its founding, Hezbollah has embedded itself in Lebanese society and linked itself with the Lebanese political and social systems in order to appear as a legitimate body in the eyes of the world. The organization has developed a well funded and well organized education system in order to ensure that children grow up to support and join the organization.
Additionally, children take part in youth movements, such as the Imam al-Mahdi youth movement, which is affiliated with Hezbollah. The movement teaches the ways of the “resistance” as well as military tactics and radical Islam.
