Monday, January 12, 2015
Maps of Paris Jewish Schools Found in Terrorist’s Car
It has been revealed that terrorist Amedy Coulibaya, who murdered four people in a kosher supermarket in Paris on Friday, may have planned to attack a Jewish school just one day earlier.IsraellyCool: Phillips Talks To Poller, Dyer & Murray On France, Terror And Islam
Maps with the locations of Jewish schools on them were found in his car.
On Thursday, Coulibaya shot and murdered a female police officer who was responding to a car accident. Investigators now suspect that he had been planning to attack a Jewish school located a short distance beyond the site of the crash.
The policewoman’s death had caused confusion, as it was not clear why Coulibaya would have traveled from his own neighborhood to the district of Mountrouge to shoot a random police officer.
“Everyone thinks he was on his way to the school,” an employee at a bakery near the site of the shooting told the British Guardian.
In 2012, a terrorist attacked a Jewish school in Toulouse, murdering four people. The victims were a father and his two young sons, and an 8-year-0ld girl.
This morning I’m passing on not one, not two but three great interviews by Melanie Phillips from her show yesterday on Voice of Israel. The whole show is a must listen but it’s split into three segments. First up is Nidra Poller, a US journalist who’s lived in France for many years. Then retired US Naval Intelligence Officer Cmdr Jennifer Dyer who wrote a devastating piece about the Jihadi tactics used in Paris. Finally it’s British stalwart, Douglas Murray whose interview with Sky News we featured a few days ago.Douglas Murray and Melanie Phillips - Charlie Hebdo
Douglas Murray - Intelligence Agencies and Terror [Fox News]
BBC Reporter at Paris Rally: “Palestinians Suffer at Jewish Hands”
Barely had the French Jewish community time to get their heads around the appalling terror attack on a Paris kosher supermarket when the BBC’s Tim Willcox interviewed a Jewish woman at the January 11 solidarity rally in Paris. Interrupting her, Willcox says:"Palestinians suffered hugely at Jewish hands" -- BBC's Tim Wilcox to scared Jewish lady in Paris:
"Many critics of Israel’s policy would suggest that the Palestinians suffer hugely at Jewish hands as well."
Note that Willcox specifically says “Jewish” rather than “Israeli,” thus effectively holding French Jewry (and all Jews) responsible for the actions of Israel.
“Holding Jews collectively responsible for actions of the state of Israel” is included in the European Union’s Working Definition of Anti-Semitism while the U.S. State Department says: “Accusing Jews as a people of being responsible for real or imagined wrongdoing committed by a single Jewish person or group, the state of Israel, or even for acts committed by non-Jews.“
And for good measure, Willcox, when he fails to get his interviewee to agree with his offensive logic, adds:
"But you understand; everything is seen from different perspectives."
This isn’t the first time that Tim Willcox has demonstrated disturbing behavior when it comes to Jews. As BBC Watch explains, Willcox promoted the “Jewish lobby” trope on a BBC broadcast as recently as November 2014.
Tim Willcox’s inference that the Middle East conflict can in any way explain or justify an attack on Jews in France or anywhere else in the world is simply appalling.
BBC’s Willcox Reminds Us: A French Jew Is Ultimately A Jew
Chava tries to get things back on track and finish her thought by saying that the two issues (Nazi Europe/Arab war on Israel) bear no relationship, however Willcox interrupts her once again, saying, “But you understand, everything is seen from different perspectives?”British MP's Response to Paris Attacks? '#JeSuis
And here you have it: the truth doesn’t matter to Willcox. What matters is the narrative. He has chosen this narrative because he LIKES this narrative. He LIKES to paint the Jew evil. He likes to lump them all together in one neat bundle. He enjoys creating excuses for the violent deaths of Jews at the hands of Muslims, whom he sees as united with his European ethic of Jew-hatred.
It’s a neat bundle because we say “Israel” instead of “Jews.” And now that everyone has accepted that the two words are synonyms, it is now possible to say “Jew” when you mean “Israel.”
Hence Willcox speaks of “Jewish hands” rather than “Israeli hands.”
A British MP who has come under fire on numerous occasions for anti-Semitic and anti-Israel remarks is once again in the spotlight, this time for his controversial Tweets in response to last week's terrorist attacks in France.JCPA: Terrorism against France: The Hypocrisy of Hamas
Liberal Democrat MP David Ward did not issue any condemnatory statements following Friday's deadly attack on a kosher grocery store in Paris, although he had tweeted his solidarity with the Charlie Hebdo magazine, whose offices were attacked the previous Wednesday.
But following Sunday's mega-rally in Paris, in which Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu joined dozens of world leaders in marching in solidarity with the French people, Ward apparently woke up, Tweeting: "#Netanyahu in Paris march - what!!!! Makes me feel sick"
Not content with that response, Ward then co-opted the solidarity hashtag #JeSuisCharlie and #JeSuisJuif ("I am Charlie" and "I am Jewish"), tweeting: Je suis #Palestinian
The Gaza-based Hamas issued a condemnation of the terrorist attacks in France. According to Fatah sources, however, in recent months Hamas operatives were responsible for attacks on the French Cultural Center in Gaza, affiliated with the French consulate there.Paris Terror Attacks: Hamas, Fatah Fooling Europe
The French Cultural Center in Gaza was attacked twice over the past year, most recently in December, when unidentified persons infiltrated the site at night and planted an explosive device that detonated and caused extensive damage.
On December 17, East Jerusalem’s Al-Quds newspaper published an announcement by the Salafi jihadist organization Jund Ansar Allah, in which it took responsibility for the attack on the French Cultural Center.
The announcement stated, “The operation was intended to help the Islamic State under aerial bombings in Iraq and Syria by the international coalition of which France is a member.”
In a link to the announcement, a video showed masked terrorists planting the explosive device at the French Cultural Center.
Hamas should be the last to denounce assaults on journalists and free speech. Its security forces in the Gaza Strip continue to arrest and intimidate Palestinian journalists on a regular basis. Just hours before the Hamas statement, a Hamas-affiliated website, Al-Resalah, tweeted a photo of the three slain French terrorists and described them as "martyrs."Netanyahu to French Jews: The World Must Unite Against Terror
Hamas's condemnation of terrorism -- which apparently fooled many good people who sincerely hoped that maybe "this time" Hamas was actually reforming -- should be seen only as efforts to appease the EU and persuade its governments that they were right to remove Hamas from the terrorist list.
In French, Hamas said "it condemns the attack... and insists that differences of opinion and thought cannot justify murder." Hamas, however, was extremely careful not to condemn the terror attack on the Jewish supermarket in Paris -- because Hamas believes that attacks against Jews are legitimate. Condemning the killing of Jews would have meant that Hamas would also have to denounce its own terror attacks against Jews.
In case you are thinking that abuses apply only to Hamas, Fatah posted a drawing on its official Facebook page, showing a pile of skulls and skeletons with Jewish stars on them, later removing the image.
Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu on Monday met with leaders of the French Jewish community in the wake of the horrific attack on a kosher supermarket in Paris last Friday, in which four Jews were murdered by Islamist terrorists.Israeli President Demands of World Governments, Particularly France, to Protect Jewish Communities
"First of all, I would like to thank you, leaders of the French Jewish community, for the warm hospitality," Netanyahu said. "Yesterday’s event in the La Victoire synagogue was emotional."
"I was also moved at the meeting with the bereaved families. I embraced the two brothers and I told them that I understand their feelings very well and that the entire Jewish People embraces the families. This was a moment of genuine Jewish solidarity," said the prime minister.
Commenting on the two other attacks in Paris last week, including the murder of 12 people at the Charlie Hebdo headquarters and the shooting of a policewoman, he said "the visit to Paris was also a moment of general solidarity with humanity. As soon as the security problem was resolved, thus allowing me to come, it was natural that I come here, it was important that I come here and therefore I came here."
Israel’s President Reuven Rivlin demanded in a public statement on Sunday that the world’s governments, particularly France, protect their local Jewish communities.Netanyahu, in Paris shul, thanks France for ‘firm’ stance on anti-Semitism
“We demand of all governments around the world, and the government of France in particular, to protect and safeguard the security and well-being of the Jewish community,” Rivlin said. “There is an obligation to ensure Jews are able to live with dignity and pride, without being victims of attacks, threats and intimidation.”
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday he appreciated the “very firm position” taken by French leaders against “the new anti-Semitism and terrorism” in France, speaking after millions of French gathered to rally for unity in the face of terror.Two Scenes From the Grand Synagogue of Paris
He also thanked Lassana Bathily, the Muslim employee of a Jewish supermarket who saved several hostages during a jihadist attack on Friday.
“Our common enemy is radical, extremist Islam — not normal Islam,” Netanyahu said in an address at the Grand Synagogue in Paris, after briefly joining other world leaders in a mammoth march against extremism through the capital that drew up to 1.6 million people.
Four of the 17 fatalities in France’s three-day wave of violence were Jews killed in an attack on a kosher supermarket hours before the start of the Jewish Shabbat on Friday.
The sister of attack victim Yoav Hattab, one of four Jews killed in the attack at the Hyper Cacher market, urged those gathered at the memorial to light four extra candles each Shabbat “so they may remain etched in our hearts.” The sister, who asked not to be named, also played a recording of Hattab singing the Modeh Ani prayer.
Anyone who wants to understand how the Jews of France—and most other places in the Diaspora, including the United States—feel inside, especially at times when we are targeted by men with guns who represent a radical, fascistic ideology bent on killing us, should take a look at these two videos from the Grand Synagogue of Paris after a solidarity rally that brought an estimated 1.5 million people into the streets to declare their support for free speech and their opposition to Islamist terrorism.Netanyahu at attacked market calls for European support against terror
The first video shows the entrance of French President François Hollande to the Grand Synagogue, followed 40 seconds or so later by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who unlike Hollande is greeted by loud and spontaneous cheering.
The second video shows another side of who we are, and how we feel about the countries where we live. When Netanyahu finishes his speech, the crowd spontaneously starts singing their national anthem—which is, of course, the French national anthem.
Arriving to the cries of “Bibi, Bibi” — his nickname — and under massive security protection, Netanyahu paid tribute to victims at the site, and was accompanied by Foreign Minister Avigdor Liberman.Eyewitnesses Recount Horror Siege at HyperCacher Market, Say Terrorist Coulibaly Was ‘Oddly Relaxed’
Speaking to the press there, Netanyahu called on European leaders to support Israel in its own fight against terror, likely a reference to European criticism of Israel regarding its conflict with the Palestinians.
“A direct line leads between the attacks of extremist Islam around the world to the attack that took place here at a kosher supermarket in the heart of Paris,” he said. “I expect all of the leaders, with whom we marched in the streets of Paris yesterday, to fight terrorism wherever it is, also when it is directed against Israel and Jews.”
The prime minister also warned that the terror threat would grow.
The couple had been doing some last minute shopping at the market when they heard a loud explosion. A dozen people, including the couple, ran towards the back of the store and took refuge in the storage room downstairs. After a few minutes, one of the market’s employees was sent down to get them. The employee said that if those in hiding didn’t come back, Coulibaly would kill all those who had remained upstairs.Pictured - INSIDE the freezer at Kosher deli: Terrified hostages cradle a child and send desperate text messages to loved ones as crazed fanatic was in standoff with armed police upstairs
Nessim and Marie agreed to go back upstairs with another young man, Yohan Cohen. Seeing that Coulibaly had left his rifle sitting on a box next to him, Cohen attempted to seize it and fought with the gunman for a few seconds before he was shot dead. Three other people had already been killed by Coulibaly by that time, the witnesses said.
Seventeen hostages still remained in the market, along with a few more who had remained in the storage room – Coulibaly never checked the basement, perhaps out of fear of being locked in by the hostages, the two witnesses surmised.
According to Nessim, Coulibaly had two Kalashnikov rifles, two automatic guns and a knife. He was also carrying sticks of dynamite in his bag.
Nessim said that the gunman seemed oddly “relaxed”.
Huddled together for warmth amid cardboard boxes of food, these pictures show terrified shoppers hiding in a freezer during the armed siege of the Kosher deli in Paris.Sole Woman Killed in Charlie Hebdo Massacre Targeted Because ‘She Was Jewish,’ Cousin Says
One woman is seen cradling her child, while in another image a hostage sends a text message to a loved one.
Above them crazed fanatic Amedy Coulibaly was in a standoff with police, having stormed the Hyper Cacher in the Porte de Vincennes area of the city, taking 19 hostages and shooting three of them dead on the spot.
The sole woman killed in the massacre at French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo on Wednesday was targeted because she was a Jew, her cousin has asserted.Pro-Israel rally scrapped in Amsterdam over security concerns
Speaking to CNN’s Erin Burnett, Sophie Bramly, the cousin of Jewish Charlie Hebdo columnist Elsa Cayat, was asked whether she believed that Cayat had been “specifically targeted.”
“Yes, I do,” Bramley responded. “They spared all the women, and she was the only one killed, and she was the only one Jewish.”
Bramley added that Cayat’s brother had told her that the columnist had been receiving threatening phone calls for “a while.”
“Anonymous phone calls, obviously, and I can’t say that it was the same team of people,” Bramley, a film producer, said, “but the calls were saying basically, ‘Dirty Jew, you should stop working for Charlie Hebdo, otherwise we’re going to kill you.’ So if you put two and two together, it seems like, yeah, she was definitely killed because she was Jewish.”
Organizers of a pro-Israel rally in Amsterdam postponed the event indefinitely after meeting with police and city officials.Elliott Abrams: Solidarity with journalists, not Jews
The rally, which was announced last month and scheduled to take place on Jan. 11, was “postponed because of the current situation in Paris and in coordination with the police, the municipality and security,” the Holland4Israel group wrote Friday on their Facebook page. The group did not name a new date.
The massive march in France on Sunday was a wonderful sight in many ways, and represents France's rejection of efforts to crush freedom of expression and especially to ban criticism of Islam.One Kumbaya March Can’t Stop Islamism or Cleanse Europe of Jew-Hatred
But in addition to the ubiquitous "Je suis Charlie" slogans, it would have been nice to see more "Je suis Juif" signs as well. After all, the journalists working at Charlie Hebdo knew exactly what risks they were running. Their offices had already been bombed, and the constant presence of two police guards (both murdered by the terrorists last week) was a powerful reminder of the dangers. The French Jews who were murdered were just shoppers, preparing for the Sabbath. The journalists were killed for their deliberate actions, challenging and criticizing Islamic beliefs. The Jews were killed for being Jews.
Terrorism against French Jews is not new. In 2012 a terrorist murdered three schoolchildren and a rabbi at a Jewish school in Toulouse. There was no million-citizen march. And suppose that last week's terror attack in Paris had not targeted Charlie Hebdo, but "only" killed four Jews, or eight, or 12, for that matter. Does anyone believe a million French citizens would be marching in Paris, with scores of world leaders joining them?
One is reminded of the synagogue bombing on Rue Copernic in Paris in 1980, after which Prime Minister Raymond Barre publicly declared that "a bomb set for Jews killed four innocent Frenchmen." That shocking lack of solidarity, that definition of French that excludes Jews, does not seem to have been cured, and the French today appear to feel more solidarity with the journalists who were killed than with the Jews who were killed.
Similarly, the decision of the terrorists to target a kosher market on the eve of the Sabbath cannot be taken out of the context of a situation in France and Europe in which Jews have felt themselves under siege. Some have excused the numerous attacks on Jews as the natural reaction to outrage about Israel’s attempts to defend itself against terrorism. But this “new” anti-Semitism is merely a variant on the more traditional forms of Jew hatred that have found new traction because they draw on the hostility of non-Muslim intellectual elites for Israel as well as that of immigrants from the Middle East and the vestiges of pre-Holocaust French anti-Semitism. Long before the slaughter of the past few days, Jewish travelers to France were warned not to dress in a manner that would identify them as Jewish and thus be vulnerable to random street violence, if not worse.After Terror Attacks, Hundreds Attend Jewish Agency Aliyah Fair in Paris
As I wrote on Friday, the primary fear expressed by the media was that there would be a backlash against Muslims. But the Hyper Cacher terror attack illustrated that it was the Jews who had most to fear, not Muslims or Arabs. The fact that the Grand Synagogue in Paris was closed for Sabbath services this week because of fear of more terrorism while the Parisian Great Mosque remained open tells us all we need to know about where the real threat lies.
It would be nice to think a grand gesture such as that of the march or even the very appropriate statements about Jewish security from French leaders would be enough to change things. But history tells us about how adaptable and persistent the virus of anti-Semitism has been. It has morphed from a defining characteristic of the old French religious right to that of fascism to Nazism and then to Communism and now is a fundamental aspect of an Islamist movement that can claim broad support around the world. This deep-seated variant of hate can draw on the sympathy of both the left and right wings of European politics that share the Islamists’ antipathy for Israel and Jewish identity. A Europe where bans of circumcision and kosher slaughter are thinkable and where boycotts of Israel are increasingly popular is not one in which Jew-hatred or Islamism can be waved away with a rhetorical flourish or a mass media event.
“The Jewish Agency embraces the French Jewish community at this difficult time and is extending its full support by helping provide for the physical security of Jewish communities across France, increasing our assistance to any individual who wishes to immigrate to Israel, and working to ease immigrants’ integration into the Israeli workforce and Israeli society,” said Natan Sharansky, chairman of the Jewish Agency.IsraellyCool: Where Was The Huge Show Of International Support After Har Nof Terror Attack?
According to the Jewish Agency’s statistics, France was the leading country for aliyah to Israel in 2014 with new 7,000 arrivals, up from 3,400 in 2013.
On Thursday, after the Charlie Hebdo attack but before the kosher supermarket attack, Sharansky cautioned against strategically promoting terrorism in France as a reason for aliyah.
“We’re not building our aliyah strategy on tragic events,” Sharansky told the Times of Israel. “We’re building it on the fact that there is this place in the world called Europe, where Jews are feeling increasingly uncomfortable.”
On Sunday, leaders from around the world, including King Abdullah II of Jordan, attended a rally in Paris. Parallel rallies in support of the French were held in Jerusalem, New York, Berlin, London, Brussels, Madrid, Moscow, Vienna, Stockholm, Dublin, Rome, Milan, Lisbon, Istanbul, Beirut, Sydney, and Tokyo. I admit I scratched my head when I saw that there were even shows of solidarity in Gaza and Ramallah, although in each case only some dozens of people showed up.PMW: Abbas' hypocrisy: Abbas participated in the anti-terror march in France, while the PA glorifies terrorists who killed Israelis
This is all as it should be. It is right and good that — with notable exceptions such as the Al Jazeera editorial staff — the vast majority of the world is united against terrorism.
But where were all of these people after the massacre at Har Nof? Or, for that matter, after the running down in Jerusalem of Chaya Zissel Braun in October, after three people were killed outside of the Brussels Jewish Museum last June, or when three Jewish schoolchildren were gunned down in Toulouse in March of 2012, or . . . .
Today, Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas participated in the anti-terror march in France following the last few days' horrific terror attacks in Paris, which the PA has officially condemned. Reporting on a conversation between Abbas and French President Francois Hollande, the official PA news agency wrote that:France Told Bibi: If You Come, We'll Invite Abbas
"Abbas condemned all terrorist actions that claim innocent lives, whether they are Christians, Jews, Muslims or followers of other religions, stressing the sacredness of human life." [WAFA, official PA news agency, English edition, Jan. 10, 2015]
However, as Palestinian Media Watch has documented, the PA and Fatah continue to glorify acts of terror against Israeli civilians.
Just last week, 5 terrorists who recently killed a total of 10 Israelis were included on a list of "Martyrs of 2014" who "ascended" to Heaven, published in the bi-weekly Al-Asima distributed with the official Palestinian Authority daily.
According to the report, Jerusalem and Paris exchanged diplomatic blows over the matter. Netanyahu contacted a “senior French official” and asked to attend the rally, but France said it did not want him there, because his presence would create "difficulty in arranging the rally."Liberman denies France opposed PM’s presence at Paris march
Netanyahu agreed and said he would not fly, but changed his mind when he learned that ministers Naftali Bennett and Avigdor Liberman intend to attend the rally.
He informed the French of the decision, and in response the French said that if Netanyahu attends, they would invite Mahmoud Abbas as well.
Foreign Minister Avigdor Liberman denied on Monday that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was unwelcome at Sunday’s massive Paris march, and said the French government had voiced no objections to the participation of the Israeli premier at the event.Did Abbas Come to Honor the Victims or the Terrorists?
The foreign minister’s account contradicted comments late Sunday night from the Prime Minister’s Office confirming that Paris was initially opposed to Netanyahu attending Sunday’s historic march, believing his presence at the rally would be “divisive.”
In an interview with Army Radio, Liberman also rejected allegations by some quarters that the presence of four Israeli representatives at the rally — Netanyahu, Liberman, Economy Minister Naftali Bennett, and MK Eli Yishai — was excessive.
“There was no message from Élysée Palace that Netanyahu was unwanted,” Liberman insisted.
One man came to the party and ruined it for anyone who believed in the sanctity of the occasion. Mahmoud Abbas showed up.Palestinian Terror Gets a Pass at France Rally
As the result of Islamic terror that bloodied Paris and ripped out the heart of civilization, a million people, citizens and visitors, assembled in Place de la Republique in a march of support for free speech and tolerance. This was no place for Abbas. He has a different act.
I wrote that this man dances at every wedding. Now we see him dancing at any funeral.
On a day when the chorus of the world rang out in a spirit of reconciliation – Liberty, Equality, Fraternity -- Abbas marched with kings, queens, princes, presidents and prime ministers, but he marched out of step. He is no dignitary. He is a warlord. He is a mobster. He is the Al Capone of his gangland turf in the Middle East.
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas joined the front rank of world leaders in Paris at a massive anti-terror rally on Sunday, separated by a few world leaders from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who also led the march through the city streets. The gesture was intended to create a message of unity and peace, but it also had the effect of sanitizing Abbas’s ongoing support for terrorism against Israeli civilians.‘Their Hands Are Covered in Blood:’ Bennett Denounces Presence of PA President Abbas and Qatar at Paris Anti-Terror Rally
As recently as November, Abbas sent a letter of condolence to the family of the terrorist who attempted to murder Jewish religious activist Yehudah Glick, after the terrorist was killed by Israeli security forces. Calling the Israeli army “terrorists,” Abbas assured the family of the actual terrorist that he “will go to heaven as a martyr defending the rights of our people and its holy places.”
Throughout his administration, Abbas has honored terrorists in similar fashion, naming public buildings and squares in their honor. The Palestinian Authority also provides financial compensation to terrorists in Israeli prisons and their families. The official media outlets of the Palestinian Authority, which are under Abbas’s direct control, have also broadcast a steady stream of antisemitic propaganda and glamorized terror against Israelis, including civilians. For much of 2014, Abbas also participated in a unity government with the Hamas terror organization.
Israel Economy Minister Naftali Bennett has issued a stinging criticism of the presence of Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, as well as other Arab leaders he deemed to be complicit in terrorism, at today’s anti-terrorism rally in Paris. “Their hands are covered in blood,” Bennett declared in an interview with Army Radio in Israel.Abbas in Paris: Hypocrisy Isn’t Progress
As well as Abbas, Bennett singled out Gulf emirate Qatar for its support of the Palestinian Islamist Hamas organization. “It’s hypocritical of those same Qataris and Arabs who are financing terrorism to come and demonstrate as if against terrorism,” Bennett told a Jewish youth group in the French capital. “I don’t accept this.”
Bennett also said there was no difference between terrorism directed against a Jewish community in the West Bank and that on the streets of Paris. “When an Islamist murderer kills the Fogel family in Itamar, when Abu Mazen [Abbas] finances terrorists who afterwards go and blow themselves up in Tel Aviv, it’s no different from those same terrorists in Paris,” Bennett, the leader of Israel’s nationalist Jewish Home Party, said. “We won’t let 2015 turn into 1938.”
Abbas has in recent months personally incited his people to commit acts of violence as part of an effort to falsely convince them that the mosques on the Temple Mount are in danger. Abbas’s praise of a terrorist who tried to assassinate a rabbi advocating Jewish prayer rights on the Mount as someone who went straight to heaven tells us all we need to know about the PA. This is, of course, in addition to the steady drumbeat of incitement against Jews and Israel on the official PA media controlled by Abbas. Indeed, had the Charlie Hebdo and kosher market murderers committed their acts in Israel, there is little doubt that Abbas would have honored them by naming a square or some edifice after them. It is also certain that had they been captured alive after taking part in an act of terrorism, he would have supported taking Israeli hostages in order to free them in a prisoner exchange, after which he would have greeted them as heroes as he has terrorists who committed equally heinous crimes against Jews.Hamas slams Abbas ‘hypocrisy’ for Paris trip
One may say that, to use Francois de La Rochefoucauld’s memorable phrase, Abbas’s presence at the rally is a classic case of hypocrisy being “the homage vice pays to virtue.” But any good that might come from the symbolism of Abbas being there also reminds us that it will take more than one rally, however impressive it might have been, to defeat Islamist terror. What France and the world need to do to defeat terror is to acknowledge that the problem lies not so much in the few who commit these acts but in the vast number of people in the Muslim and Arab worlds that either rationalize or support such acts. Progress will come not when Mahmoud Abbas marches in Paris but when he stops supporting it at home. Until then, inviting him to such events only undermines the purpose of the rally.
Palestinian terror group Hamas criticized Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas on Sunday for his attendance at a Paris rally in solidarity with the victims of last week’s terror attacks in the French capital.Richard Millett: London says Je Suis Charlie, Je Suis Ahmed, Je Suis Juif.
“This behavior is part of the hypocrisy and political acrobatics typical to Abbas,” said senior Hamas official Mahmoud al-Zahar, according to Ynet.
Zahar said Sunday that Abbas’s attendance at the march was an evasion of his responsibilities, which should first and foremost be toward his people, before standing against terror.
“Abbas wants to seem as if he’s fighting terror but he doesn’t know the meaning of terror. He thinks that in acting this way, he’s earning the sympathy of world nations. He should first worry about his own people,” said Zahar.
Trafalgar Square in London was unusually quiet and reflective today as thousands flocked to stand in sympathy with Paris and those left bereaved this week by an Islamist terror gang there.CBS: White House ‘On the Defensive’ Trying to Explain No-Show at Paris Rally
Thousands came and held up pens, pencils, crayons, signs and their own hand drawn cartoons. They sang Le Marseillaise and applauded.
As darkness fell they lay down their pens on the floor and lit candles, the National Gallery was lit up in red, white and blue and Trafalgar Square’s famous fountains alternated between those same colours.
Some chose to hold up the offending Charlie Hebdo cartoons, but I have not published those photos. I have however published photos of those brave, brave women who I saw holding up signs stating Je Suis Juif. I hope they stay safe.
I also hope that the likes of the Palestine Solidarity Campaign that pour out hatred and lies to naive minds about Israel will now cease their vile activities.
World leaders joined arms over the weekend to march in solidarity against the terrorist attacks in Paris. But there was one world power not there: the United States. The country’s absence is speaking louder than words.Eric Holder a No-Show at Historic France Rally
While the planning for the rally was put together on short notice and there were no formal invitations, more than 40 world leaders were able to attend. The White House said that the President’s security team would “interfere to much with protestors.” There also was not an appearance by anyone on the administration at the silent march in Washington, D.C. That rally was less than a mile from the White House.
Sunday’s massive march in Paris against terrorism drew dozens of world leaders in a show of unity — except from the United States, which was represented by its ambassador.Holder Balks at Declaring War Against Radical Islam
US Attorney General Eric Holder, who was in Paris Sunday to attend a meeting of interior and justice ministers discussing measures to combat jihadist attacks, was meant to have participated in the rally according to the White House on Saturday, but did not do so, the US embassy in Paris confirmed.
The embassy did not say why Holder did not attend the march. It said the United States was represented in the huge rally by its ambassador to France, Jane Hartley.
Holder, who was protected while in France by a detail of FBI officers, said after the ministers’ meeting that US President Barack Obama wanted to hold a summit of allied leaders in Washington on February 18 to “discuss ways in which we can counteract this violent extremism that exists around the world”.
George Stephanopoulos leveled a simple question at U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder on Sunday's This Week on ABC: "Is the U.S. at war with radical Islam?"Muslim MP: 'Lazy, Wrong' to say Paris Attacks Not Islam
Holder meandered through a response which, essentially stated, was -- No, America is at war with those who pervert the Islamic faith and engage in terrorism. The U.S., Holder said, has taken measures to combat terrorism not through combat, but through a summit that will offer a "counter narrative" to would-be extremists by "somehow" making terrorism less attractive.
British Culture Secretary Sajid Javid, who is himself of Muslim heritage, responded to the bloody jihadist terror attacks in Paris last week that left a total of 17 dead, saying it is "lazy and wrong" to say the attacks are unrelated to Islam.France deploys 10,000 security forces, approximately half to Jewish schools
"There is no getting away from the fact that the people carrying out these acts - what we have seen just horrifically this week in Paris, what has happened in London and Madrid - these people call themselves Muslims," Javid said, reports the British The Telegraph.
"The lazy answer would be to say that this has got nothing whatsoever to do with Islam or Muslims and that should be the end of that. That would be lazy and wrong," said Javid. "You can't get away from the fact that these people are using Islam, taking a peaceful religion and using it as a tool to carry out their activities."
Javid, who is anticipated to be a future leader of the Conservative party, practices no religion while acknowledging his "Muslim heritage," and is married to a Christian wife.
France will have more than 10,000 soldiers mobilized on home soil by Tuesday after 17 were killed in attacks carried out by Islamist militants in Paris last week, Defense Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said on Monday.SAS and Army on UK streets as al Qaida warns Britain: You’re Next
Speaking a day after the biggest French public demonstration ever registered, held to remember the victims, he said France was still at risk of further attacks.
"The threats remain and we have to protect ourselves from them. It is an internal operation that will mobilize almost as many men as we have in our overseas operations," Le Drian told reporters after a cabinet meeting.
SAS troops, counter-terrorism police and army personnel are joining forces to stage the biggest security operation on British streets since the 2012 Olympic Games. Their deployment comes amidst statements from Al Qaida warning Britain: you’re next.US, EU Ministers: More Internet, Border Monitoring Needed
According to the Sunday Express, a team of 30 SAS elite soldiers has been divided into smaller groups and allocated to the Police Counter Intelligence Unit. They will form part of a “liaison plan”, assisting police by ensuring they have good contacts.
A further SAS squadron is on standby in case of an incident in Britain, whilst helicopters attached to 7 Squadron RAF were yesterday prepared to be on standby to be used by the forces. In addition, 120 commandos of the Special Boat Service are providing “maritime counter measures” to the Home Office, patrolling Britain’s seas to prevent the hijacking of tankers or major vessels.
And last night senior army officers confirmed that 1,900 regular soldiers would be placed on standby as soon as they were selected from high-readiness regiments by Army HQ in Andover, Hampshire. A senior Army source said: “We are on firm footing – and at the state of readiness we were at the height of the security operation during the Olympic Games.”
A joint statement by the ministers -- representing 11 EU nations including France, Britain, Germany, Sweden and Poland, as well as the European commissioner for migration and home affairs, and US Attorney General Eric Holder -- emphasized their "determination to fight together against terrorism".Israeli Opera Refused to Honor Terror Victims
They said it was "essential" that major Internet providers cooperate with governments in closely monitoring and, if necessary, removing online content "that aims to incite hatred and terror.”
They also want to "step up the detection and screening of travel movements of European nationals" leaving or entering the EU's external borders, and modify Europe's internal Schengen freedom-of-movement rules to widen information sharing and subject suspect passengers to greater checks.
They saw a "crucial and urgent need" to establish an EU-wide database of passenger information for travel inside Europe and for flights leaving or entering the 28-nation bloc.
French-Israeli conductor Frederic Chaslin refused to take part in a performance of Puccini’s La Rondine on Saturday evening, because the Israeli Opera management would not allow him to honor the victims of the terror attacks in Paris.Turkish PM: Islamophobia deserves rally of its own
Chaslin reportedly wanted to have the national anthem of Israel – Hatikva – played before the performance began, and to say a few words in memory of the victims of the attacks.
Management refused.
Chaslin told Army Radio that he expected the Israeli Opera to do exactly what the symphony orchestras of London and New York had done. “If in England and the US, the conductor gave a speech in memory of the victims, I do not understand why this is the one place where one can't do that.”
Davutoglu joined dozens of other world leaders at the march in Paris to mourn the victims of the three days of terror by Islamists that began with the slaughter of 12 people at the offices of satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo.Malaysian ex-PM and Islamoloon Mahathir Mohamad slams Paris victims for insulting Islam
The presence of Davutoglu, one of the top Muslim leaders to attend the rally, was seen in Turkey as hugely symbolic given that Charlie Hebdo had often lampooned the Prophet Muhammad.
“It is a message to the whole world that everyone must confront the threat of terror,” Davutoglu told reporters at the Turkish embassy in Paris in televised comments.
“We would expect the same sensitivities to be shown to attacks on mosque or Islamophobia,” he added after attending the rally which mobilized over a million people in Paris alone.
MALAYSIA’S former prime minister Mahathir Mohamad has become the first prominent international figure to respond to the Paris murders by primarily criticising the victims.In Wake of Paris Attacks, Iran Condemns “Misuse” of Free Speech as Form of Extremism
While adding, “I do not condone these killings”, he said in Kuala Lumpur about the Charlie Hebdo victims: “They committed despicable acts such as insulting prophet Mohammed”.
They did not respect Islam, said Dr Mahathir — who was described by then Australian prime minister Paul Keating as “recalcitrant” in 1993.
“They like to do caricatures regarding religious issues,” said the still highly influential Malaysian figure. “This is an act of provocation”…
Iran’s semi-official Press TV reported that spokeswoman, Marziye Afham, called “any terrorist action against innocent people as being against Islam’s teachings.” However Afham also implicitly condemned the magazine:Egyptian Minister: Paris Attacks Turned Muslims into Aggressors, Charlie Hebdo into Victim
"The spokeswoman also condemned as unacceptable any form of misuse of freedom of speech, intellectual radicalism, and character assassination against personalities that are revered by religions and nations.
“Such behaviors are the continuation of the wave of extremism as well as physical and intellectual violence that has been spreading unprecedentedly across the world throughout the past decade…,” she added."
Egyptian TV Host Mostafa Sherdy on Paris Terror Attacks: We Told You So, Britain, Germany Are Next
Quenelle comedian Dieudonné praises terrorist killer: 'As far as I am concerned, I feel I am Charlie Coulibaly'
The anti-semitic French comedian Dieudonné has declared his admiration for the terrorist who murdered four people at a kosher supermarket in Paris last Friday.
Dieudonné M’Bala M’bala, 48, who has several convictions for making anti-semitic comments and jokes, came to international attention 12 months ago after the footballer Nicolas Anelka performed his trademark gesture the “quenelle” during a Premier League match.
In a statement on his Facebook page after the 1,500,000 strong “march against hatred” in Paris , Dieudonné declared: “As far as I am concerned, I feel I am Charlie Coulibaly”.
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