JCPA: Do Stabbing Attacks Constitute Terrorism?
It is curious to note that Sweden recently adopted a “New Swedish strategy against terrorism” as presented to the Swedish parliament by its minister for home affairs on August 28, 2015.PMW: Fatah official: “Whoever succeeded in killing, this is a big thing”
This strategy states:
Terrorism threatens international peace and security, national security and our fundamental rights and freedoms. Every year, numerous terrorist attacks are carried out around the world. Recent years have seen a sharp increase in problems related to foreign terrorist fighters and there is presently no indication that this trend will abate.
The strategy sets the goal of all counter-terrorism activities – to keep terrorist attacks from being carried out, including a specific reference for the need to prevent terror through influencing “the intent of individuals to commit or support terrorist crime”.
Clearly, stabbing attacks by individuals – even against Israelis – would enter within the need, as set out in the Swedish strategy against terrorism, to “Prevent, Preempt and Protect against such terror.”
Why did the Swedish leadership, while acknowledging the need to prevent individuals from carrying out acts of terror, nevertheless appear to have maintained such a blatant double-standard in denying that knife attacks by individuals against Israeli citizens could be acts of terror?
While any prime minister and foreign minister are human and may even make mistakes, one might assume that in any efficient governmental system, statements on major issues of a legal nature issued by senior governmental representatives, regarding actions of friendly states, would be based on accurate knowledge and awareness of the legal principles involved and devoid of partisan double-standards. It appears the Swedish government may be taking a crash course on these anti-terrorist principles.
After mentioning by name two terrorists who in total murdered four Israelis, senior Fatah official Abbas Zaki praised all Palestinian attackers, and in particular those who succeeded to murder:
“Whoever succeeded in killing, this is a big thing, and whoever [was killed but] succeeded in at least scaring the Israeli pedestrian is also a Martyr.”[Official PA TV, Oct. 31, 2015]
According to Zaki, all those who attacked Israelis are “giants,” “leaders,” and “pioneers” and those who died attacking Israelis are “Martyrs.” Although terrorist Raed Jaradat did not “succeed” in killing anyone, but “only” stabbed and critically wounded an Israeli soldier, Zaki singled him out, stating that he is “just like” the murderers, i.e., just as honorable. Zaki exemplifies the PA policy Palestinian Media Watch has documented of turning terrorists into role models and heroes for society, stating that this stabber surely will have something named after him:
“I believe that, Allah willing, something will be built and named after him [Raed]. When Palestine is liberated, Allah willing, he will have at least an institution named after him, and a statue [made] of him.”
PMW: Rock-throwing dolls for Palestinian children misrepresented by PA
A container load of dolls holdings rocks in their raised hands (see picture above) and wearing Palestinian headscarves - keffiyehs - with the inscriptions "Jerusalem is ours" and "O Jerusalem, here we come" was intended for Palestinian Authority children to play with. However, the Israeli Customs Authority confiscated the dolls shipped from the United Arab Emirates as "inciting material" this week.
The official PA daily referred to the confiscation as the "Israeli war against children's dolls" [Al-Hayat Al-Jadida, Dec. 9, 2015] and pretended the problem was the Palestinian headscarf: "Israel confiscated 4,000 dolls whose faces were covered with a Palestinian keffiyeh!" The paper did not mention the fact that the doll is positioned to throw a rock and is promoting child violence.
However, this reaction is not surprising as the rock-throwing doll fits nicely the hate and violence messages of PA children's education. Palestinian Media Watch has reported that a PA school recently honored and named a football tournament after a terrorist who stabbed and seriously injured two civilians. Similarly, Fatah official Tawfiq Tirawi praised his 2-year-old son for singing "Daddy, buy me a machine gun and a rifle, so that I will defeat Israel and the Zionists":
Four injured in apparent West Bank car-ramming attack
Four Israelis were injured in a suspected car-ramming attack in the West Bank on Thursday afternoon.Watch the insanity: Terrorist runs down soldiers
A man in his 20s suffered serious wounds, while three other people were lightly to moderately wounded.
Three of the four wounded were IDF soldiers, the army said.
The vehicular attack took place near the settlement of Beit Aryeh, just over the Green Line from Israel’s urban center outside Tel Aviv in an area that has seen little of the violence that has rocked the country over the last several months.
The attacker fled the scene in a black Isuzu, according to initial reports. Security forces were searching the area for the driver.
They later found the car abandoned in the nearby village of Rantis. They recovered an IDF-issued weapon inside the car, the army said.
A security camera caught the gut-wrenching moments on Thursday afternoon when an Arab terrorist ran his car into four IDF soldiers, at the village of Al Luban adjacent to the entrance to Beit Aryeh, a town just over the 1949 Armistice lines.Terror Attack near Beit Aryeh
The soldiers were wounded, one moderately to seriously and the other three lightly.
The seriously wounded victim was evacuated to Beilinson Hospital in Petah Tikva, while the other three were treated at the scene.
Israeli couple injured in West Bank drive-by shooting
Two Israelis were injured Wednesday evening in a shooting attack next to the West Bank settlement of Avnei Hefetz, southeast of the Palestinian city of Tulkarem, according to security forces.IDF said to raid homes in ongoing manhunt for shooters
The two were travelling in a car when shots were fired at them from a passing vehicle, the army said. IDF troops were searching the area for a vehicle that fled the scene.
Twenty bullet holes were found in the couple’s car, according to Channel 2 News.
Magen David Adom paramedics treated a 60-year-old woman for light injuries. She was evacuated to the Meir Medical Center in Kfar Saba for further treatment.
A bullet pierced the skull of the 60-year-old man who was evacuated to the Beilinson Hospital in Petah Tikva where he was taken into surgery. He was not in life-threatening condition.
Security forces continued their search Thursday for the perpetrators of a terror attack in the West Bank the night before, as one of two injured victims remained in critical condition.Toddler injured in rock attack near Beitar Illit
Shaul and Rachel Nir were shot in their car from another vehicle as they left the Avnei Hefetz settlement after lighting Hanukkah candles at their daughter’s house. Their car was hit by over 20 bullets, causing the driver to lose control of the vehicle and crash.
Magen David Adom paramedics gave the couple preliminary treatment at the scene before evacuating them to Beilinson Hospital in Petah Tikva. Doctors said one of the bullets pierced Shaul’s skull, who was initially listed in moderate to serious condition but deteriorated overnight. Rachel suffered light wounds after a bullet was stopped by a 10-shekel coin in her bag, according to Army Radio.
A baby girl about six-months-old was lightly wounded Thursday morning when terrorists threw rocks at an Israeli vehicle traveling from Beitar Illit toward Jerusalem.3 Palestinians arrested in Afula with large knives, no ID
The toddler was taken to Shaare Zedek Medical Center in the capital after being wounded by glass shards.
According to reports, she was struck right between her eyes.
Police officers in the northern Israeli city of Afula arrested three Palestinians on Wednesday evening who were found carrying large knives and had no form of ID.CAMERA: When PA Talking Points Become AP Talking Points
Local residents alerted police to the three, saying they behaved in a suspicious manner.
All three Palestinians were in Israel illegally, police said.
After the calls began to come in from residents, officers launched a thorough search of the area. When they located the suspects, the officers saw one of the three immediately throw away what turned out to be a large knife.
A search of the three turned up two more identical knives. During questioning, it emerged that two of the Palestinians were minors and all were residents of the West Bank city of Jenin. The knives had a blade 23 centimeters (9 inches) in length.
Let's recap: Reporters cite opposition to a Palestinian state by some Israeli leaders as fact. To this, they add nothing about what Palestinian officials "rarely mention" — one possibility: that that this position might be a result of living for a century under the threat of Arab violence and rejectionism.Firebomb Photos Latest ‘Rage’ Among Arab Terrorists
On the other hand, opposition to Israel's continued existence by some Palestinian leaders is mislabeled as opposition to occupation, or cast as a mere Israeli claim. And even then, reporters in their own voice rebut with a Palestinian talking point — literally a Palestinian talking point — that "the main issue is the Israeli occupation."
Perhaps this round of violence indeed defies easy explanation, as the AP reports state. So reporters should try their best to explain, but while still doing the hard work required of professional journalists, which includes remaining even-handed and reporting impartially.
The short-cut of relying on the Palestinian narrative's template, which casts Israelis as hardline, Abbas as innocent but helpless, and Palestinians as provoked to violence by Israeli oppression, doesn't cut it. Reporters should resist the temptation to push their subjective opinions on readers by using their authoritative voice to push Palestinian talking points while minimizing Jewish concerns as mere claims by bad Israelis. And by hiding the extent of Palestinian support for violence and downplaying their opposition to Israel's existence, reporters ensure the story isn't told in its full complexity. Associated Press readers expect and deserve more.
The latest “rage” among budding Arab terrorists involves shooting — from a camera, that is.Palestinian Network Shows Teens Honoring Classmates Killed While Committing Stabbing Attacks Against Israelis
The firebomb (Molotov cocktail) is photographed just prior to being hurled at Israelis traveling on the roads.
The photo is then uploaded to Arab social media sites on the Internet.
Late Tuesday night Israelis came under firebomb attack on Loop 45, near Atarot, but no injuries were reported. Sure enough, shortly after the attack, alleged photos of the bottles used in the attack appeared in Arabic-language social media, which claimed the bottles were just “thrown away” after being photographed.
A Palestinian television news feature about high school students honoring classmates who committed terrorist acts against Israelis was distributed by the Quds News Network on Wednesday.Polish security firm sends experts to Israel to fight terror
Quds, believed to be affiliated with the terror organization Islamic Jihad, is purported to have more than 3 million viewers.
The feature shows a classroom in which the empty desks of two students killed by Israeli forces while attempting to carry out stabbing attacks are draped in Palestinian flags and adorned with “martyrdom” posters. The kids in the class extol the virtues of their dead peers and express pride over their martyrdom for Allah.
One of the 16-year-old students was killed on October 24 by Israeli forces at the Jalamah checkpoint north of Jenin as he attempted to stab an Israeli security guard. The other was killed by Israeli forces on November 2 at the same location, also while attempting to stab a soldier.
One of Poland’s largest security firms brought to Israel 20 of its top experts to help prevent Palestinian terrorist attacks.Trump says he canceled trip so as not to pressure Netanyahu
The group arrived last week in Israel, where its members met with officials, including Israel’s deputy defense minister, Eli Ben Dahan. The security experts also joined a Border Police patrol in Jerusalem.
The visit is part of the initiative of Benjamin Krasicki, president of the board of the Warsaw-based City Security, who in October offered to send 100 of his top guards at his company’s expense to Israel.
He has paid $25,000 in covering the expenses of the delegation, according to Jonny Daniels, founder of the From the Depths organization, which does Holocaust commemoration work and is also active in promoting Israeli-Polish ties.
Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump on Thursday said he was axing his upcoming visit to Israel for “lots of different reasons,” including a desire to take pressure off Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.PreOccupiedTerritory: 12 Injured As MKs Trip Over Selves To Condemn Trump (satire)
Netanyahu on Wednesday rejected Trump’s controversial suggestion of banning Muslims from entering the United States should he be elected president in 2016, but said in a statement that he would still meet with the GOP frontrunner on December 28 during his visit to Israel.
Trump told Fox News Thursday that he wasn’t canceling the trip outright: “All I’m doing is postponing it, and I think that was the better alternative.”
Trump announced earlier in the day on Twitter that he would postpone his trip to Israel and reschedule his meeting with Netanyahu “after I become President of the US.”
Zionist Union MK Amir Peretz suffered lacerations when his staff mishandled several cutting retorts to Trump. He was treated at the scene. Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu narrowly escaped harm when he retreated to his office just before blowback that resulted from his confirmation that despite his disagreement with the remarks themselves, he would meet the candidate as scheduled on December 28, in keeping with longstanding policy on meeting with all announced presidential contenders who visit Israel. Two staffers, however, were treated for shock.BOMBSHELL: EXPOSED: The Secret Muslim Connection Donald Trump Doesn’t Want You to Know About
Paramedics told PreOccupied Territory that overall, the injuries were consistent with the scrum that develops each time politicians see an opportunity to score easy rhetorical or political points by pouncing on a controversial statement. “Three people suffered concussions when their heads collided amid simultaneous pouncing, and a further four injured various muscles in the back, legs, and neck from the sudden movements involved in unplanned flinging of blame, casting of aspersions on political foes, and clumsy attempts to skewer opponents,” said a spokesman. Among the injured were three Opposition and two Coalition lawmakers.
Although he was not part of the scramble, Yisrael Beiteinu chairman Avigdor Liberman was also sent for medical examination and a rabies shot, as associates and family members worried that his silence on Trump’s statements meant the cat got his tongue.
There are currently two Trump brand luxury golf courses under construction in the United Arab Emirates, a country with known ties to Islamic terror groups. But that’s not all. The Donald’s iconic Trump Tower in Manhattan hosts a “corporate campus” of the government-owned Qatar Airways. The Qatari government has been identified as a crucial source of funding for terror groups such as ISIS and Hamas and is an enthusiastic purveyor of sharia law.Flashback: President Jimmy Carter Banned Iranians From U.S.
Trump tenants also include members of the Saudi royal family, another source of terror financing and big time sharia fans. In 1991, Trump sold his 283-foot yacht to a Saudi prince for a discounted price of $18 million. Where did that money go? We may never know. Where it definitely didn’t go is into the pocketbooks of hardworking non-establishment Americans. Luxury aficionados, including members of the out-of-touch GOP elite in Washington, could purchase fabulous Trump Home products in retail chains across the Middle East. (The retail chain has since conveniently “cut ties” with the real estate baron in a desperate attempt to curtail his political steamroller of a campaign.)
At first glance, Donald Trump seems like a wealthy, handsome cherub who has fortuitously thrust himself upon this crucial juncture in our nation’s history, charging selflessly into the barbed, cocktail-infused citadel of the Elite Opinion Makers. But when we take an exclusive look behind that admittedly fabulous curtain, we are left with a very different picture indeed: A man who pals around with rich Muslims, selling them massive boats, and building golf courses in the desert. Apart from Hillary Clinton, there is no other candidate with stronger ties to radical Islam than Donald Trump.
Is Donald Trump’s conditional bar on Muslims’ entry into the United States a shocking outrage, or just similar to the 1979 policy adopted by Democratic President Jimmy Carter?Independent asks extremist Ali Abunimah his views on #Trump’s extremist views
As liberal media and the D.C. establishment pummel GOP frontrunner Trump for his plan to exclude foreign Muslims until officials get a solution to the Islamic jihad problem, few of the complainers are recognizing that Carter expelled Iranians from the country during the extended hostage crisis that was caused by the Islamic takeover of the U.S. embassy in Tehran.
In fact, Carter did much more in 1979 — he signed an Executive Order allowing his deputies to make 50,000 Iranian students then living in the United States report to an immigration office.
The Independent published a characteristically tendentious article on Donald Trump scheduled visit to Israel (Trump to visit controversial Jerusalem site, Israel PM Netanyahu, reports say, Massoud Hayoun, Dec. 11).Neither Fox News Nor Donald Trump Are Going To Come For You With An AK, Whereas…
(Note: Trump cancelled his trip the day after the article.)
Trump has been the focus of attention for his racist suggestion that all Muslims should be banned from entering the US.
Though the article includes misleading passages (such as the false claim that the latest round of violence in Israel began due to Israeli restrictions on Muslim visits to al-Aqsa, and misleading casualty figures), especially troubling is the decision by the reporter to seek comment on the row from Ali Abunimah.
Hayoun not only quotes Abunimah, but devotes several paragraphs to his views.
This ostentatious virtue-signalling – for that is all it is – serves two purposes.'Trump has no idea how much Israel has expended on peace'
Firstly, it makes them look like nicer people – not remotely right-wing or Islamophobic or any of the other horrid things nice people don’t want to be.
Secondly, it’s the perfect form of issue avoidance – enabling them to touch briefly on a matter of great public concern and then, almost simultaneously, to pretend that the problem doesn’t exist or that at least if it does exist, Fox News and Donald Trump are much, much worse.
I do wish all these deluded dhimmis – the politicians, the pundits, the comics, the Common-Purpose-trained policemen, the tweeters – would just for once be intellectually honest and ask themselves a very simple question:
Who is more likely to come gunning for you with an AK: a) Donald Trump or someone from Fox News b) someone from the Religion of Peace?
And if the answer isn’t a) then why in heaven’s name is it the one you always give?
Jewish radio personality Nahum Segal, host of Jewish Moments in the Morning (commonly abbreviated as JM in the AM) and President of the Nachum Segal Network, explained the harsh reaction that the pro-Israel community had in response to GOP hopeful Donald Trump’s recent remarks about Israel not sacrificing enough for peace in an interview with Arutz Sheva.Donald Trump is woefully misinformed with regards to Israel
“The pro-Israel community was very concerned about Trump’s comments because they seemed somewhat irresponsible,” Segal said.
“When an American leader, especially someone like Donald Trump, who is a leader both in the business world and the political world, suggests that Israel has not done enough for the peace process, that is bordering on insulting.”
“The pro-Israel community cannot stress enough, how much effort Israel has expended on the peace-process. So for him to come out with a statement, one that seemed uneducated, stating that Israel has to do more, was seen in a very negative light,” Segal said.
The huff in the US pro-Israel community was created last Wednesday when Republican presidential candidate hopeful and front runner Donald Trump told the Associated Press that he has "a real question as to whether or not both sides [Israel and the Palestinians] want to make."
National President of the Zionist Organization of America (ZOA) Morton Klein spoke to Arutz Sheva about his concerns regarding the comment made by Republican Presidential candidate hopeful Donald Trump last week to the Associated Press and to the Republican Jewish Coalition (RJC).Muslims United for San Bernardino Raise Over $100k for Victims’ Families
The ZOA put out a press release earlier in the week strongly criticizing Trump for making the absurd statement that Israel has not made concessions for peace. The reason why the ZOA came out so strongly against the comments is that they believe them to be "woefully misinformed."
"Israel has not only given away all of Gaza and 42% of the Judea and Samaria, but they have also offered virtually all of the Judea and Samaria as well as large parts of Jerusalem for peace at two different instances," Klein explained.
Kemberlee noted on Monday that some “American Muslims band together to call out extremists,” and in addition to these efforts, another Muslim group is working to raise money for the families of the victims of radical Islamic terrorism.Attention Mr. President: ‘Economic Strain’ Does Not Cause Terrorism
The Los Angeles Times reports:
Faisal Qazi had no idea the shooters who massacred 14 people in San Bernardino last week were Muslims, like himself. The Pomona-based neurologist only knew that the victims and their families were his Inland Empire neighbors, and his faith obligated him to help.
Qazi started small, hoping to raise $20,000 through his health nonprofit. But Islamic scholars and leaders urged him to broaden the effort – especially after it was revealed that the assailants were Muslims — and the campaign quickly became the most successful crowd-funding venture Muslim Americans have ever launched for the broader community.
In just four days, the Muslims United for San Bernardino campaign has raised more than $100,000 from more than 1,000 donors across the country, including in Florida, Michigan, Ohio and Tennessee. The money will be disbursed through San Bernardino County and the United Way to assist victims’ families with funeral expenses and other needs, Qazi said.
In an interview on CBS-TV‘s “This Morning” last week, President Obama outlined his theory of the causes of terrorism. Climate change, he said, is straining natural resources around the world, and “when people are not able to make a living or take care of their families,” they become “desperate,” and “as human beings are placed under strain, then bad things happen.”DHS: Only ‘Some’ Paris Attackers Would Have Been Detected on U.S. Border
The next day, a middle-class Muslim couple who was not under any evident financial strain and was perfectly capable of taking care of its six-month- old daughter, decided to massacre 14 people in San Bernardino, California.
The terrorist, Syed Farook, was not “desperate.” He was a graduate of California State University and an environmental health specialist who worked for the San Bernardino County heath department, with an annual salary of $53,000. His wife and co-terrorist, Tashfeen Malik, was also a college graduate (Bahuddin Zakri University in Pakistan). They lived in a two-story townhouse in a nice neighborhood.
A senior Department of Homeland Security official said on Wednesday that “some” of the terrorist attackers who killed 130 people in Paris would have been prevented from entering the United States, leaving open the possibility that others might have been able to bypass current screening measures.Four Arrests Made: Islamic State-Supporting Cell Uncovered Near London
John Wagner, a deputy assistant commissioner at the Department of Homeland Security, said during testimony before the Senate Homeland and Governmental Affairs Committee that U.S. security and screening measures would have stopped some of the known attackers from traveling to the United States.
Asked whether the Paris attackers, who were European Union citizens, would “have been stopped at the border of the U.S. based on what we have right now,” Wagner was confident “some of them would have.”
“Some of them would have been prevented from traveling here to begin with,” he said. “It’s been reported some of them were identified to governments as being a national security risk already. There’s information we would have received from their travel details that we’re confidence we would have identified had they travelled to the U.S.”
Four men have been charged with supporting and aiding recruitment for the Islamic State (IS) terror group at a series of meetings near London, just weeks after a female IS supporting cell was exposed in the city.London Students Fail To Pass Motion Condemning Paris Attacks
London’s Metropolitan Police force revealed in a statement that the men were arrested last week in the town of Luton, just west of London. They are due to appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court in London tomorrow.
Mohammed Istiak Alamgir, 36, Ziaur Rahman, 38, Yousaf Bashir, 35 and Rajib Khan, 37, were arrested on 2 December. Seven properties and a number of vehicles in Luton were also searched.
All four men have now been charged with offences under the Terrorism Act and their crimes are alleged to have take place between June and July this year.
Just one week ago the NUS also voted to oppose British bombing of Islamic State terrorists at an emergency meeting following the vote in parliament.Arrow 3 missile downs ballistic target in first successful test
In reference to LSE student union, Mr. Hill added: “It will highlight a sorry double standard if this week’s motion condemning British airstrikes in Syria passes”.
A new motion to condemn the decision of the Government to bomb Syria has now been raised, which reads: “The Union notes the history of Western Interventionism,” before describing the decision to bomb as a display of “symbolic imperial might”.
Just a week ago the Palestinian society at LSE was condemned for displaying an exhibition which “celebrated” terrorism by “dramatizing” the recent wave of stabbing seen in Israel.
The institution regularly host extremists and has previously given senior academic positions to members of Hizb ut-Tahrir and journalists such as Nir Rosen, who openly support terrorists groups such as Hezbollah. Such a history has led some to dub LSE the “London School of Extremism”.
Israel and the United States successfully shot down a target with the Arrow 3 ballistic missile interceptor on Thursday morning, the first validation of the advanced system’s capabilities, the Defense Ministry said.Prisoners deported under Shalit deal set up terrorist cell
The ministry said that the interceptor successfully calculated and engaged the launched target, in what was called “a major milestone” for Israel’s missile defense system capabilities.
“The missile successfully tracked the target and killed it,” said Yair Ramati, director of the Israel Missile Defense Organization.
The Arrow 3 is designed to shoot down intercontinental ballistic missiles outside the atmosphere, intercepting the weapons and their nuclear, biological or chemical warheads close to their launch sites.
According to Palestinian sources, deportees from the Shalit deal in Gaza, Qatar and Turkey are working hard to establish independent military units in Judea, Samaria and eastern Jerusalem in order to carry out attacks against Israel.Netanyahu meets with Israeli citizen released from Egypt
Hamas sources told Yedioth Ahronoth that those deported have also begun to establish an underground organization parallel to Hamas in Judea and Samaria, much to the dismay of the movement's leadership.
The establishment of a military cell by deported prisoners would belong to Hamas’ military wing, both in Judea-Samaria and in eastern Jerusalem. The system would work in a way based on personal connections with the people in the villages and towns which they have lived and work in, before their arrest.
Each sector would operate independently and communicate only with their chosen informant. Deportees will send funds to the informant and subsequently set up military cells.
Despite opposition by Hamas leaders, resources for the deportees are being provided by the head the Hamas military wing, Saleh al-Arouri, who resides in Turkey.
An Israeli released Thursday after 15 years in an Egyptian prison on espionage charges met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem before returning home to his family in Rahat.PreOccupiedTerritory: Terror-Hit Egypt Hopes Tourists Will Just Send Money (satire)
Ouda Tarabin, who has denied all the allegations against him, was released by Egypt and returned to Israel after serving his sentence, the PMO said in a statement.
In exchange, Israel released two Egyptians being held in Israeli prisons. Both were due to be released in coming weeks, but were let go after negotiations between Jerusalem and Cairo, according to officials.
“We had long conversations with the Egyptians over the years and we are happy to see you now with us,” Netanyahu said. “I said we would bring you back here, and so it was. Now you have a fresh start.”
Tarabin thanked the prime minister for the efforts to liberate him, according to a statement from the Prime Minister’s Office.
Suleiman Tarabin, Ouda’s father, told the Ynet news site, “This is the moment we have been awaiting for 15 years. I have not yet seen him and I am dying to see him. I don’t know if he will come home today or tomorrow.”
Since a bomb destroyed a Russian passenger jet over the Sinai Peninsula at the end of October, foreign travel to Egypt has all but dried up, leaving the country’s tourism industry to pursue a new model of encouraging would-be visitors to just send money instead. Terrorism has plagued Egypt for decades, often resulting in dry spells for tourism there, but the more recent conflict with Islamic-State-allied guerrillas in the Sinai has had a more appreciable impact, officials say. To keep the economy moving, they say, it will be necessary to develop alternatives to bringing tourists and their money where they fear falling prey to the violence. To that end, they explain, Egypt will soon launch an initiative to invite those who were considering a trip to instead save themselves the hassle of international travel and simply forward the money they would have spent.
Ministry of Tourism Jassend Mani said the program addresses two overlapping needs. “Aside from supporting the country’s vital tourism industry, it strikes a blow against the Islamic State group by showing them their efforts to hurt the Egyptian economy are futile,” he explained. “What’s more, this new model can be replicated across other sectors of the economy. We just discovered enormous natural gas reserves off the coast, but it will take billions to lay a pipeline, drill, and deliver the gas. It would be far more efficient if our potential customers would simply wire us the hundreds of billions of dollars we anticipate, and allow us to avoid the trouble – not to mention the potential environmental damage – that the infrastructure would cost.”
