Last week’s anniversary of the Sbarro
massacre was celebrated
by the Aqsa TV channel, and their audience very much appreciated being reminded
of the carnage perpetrated 16 years ago by Palestinian terrorists.
Last year, just in time for the 15th anniversary of the
massacre, the American writer Ben Ehrenreich was busy celebrating all the
praise he was receiving for his newly published book that glorifies
the Tamimis of Nabi Saleh, who are not only ardent supporters
of Palestinian terrorism in general, but who also have the greatest admiration
for their relative Ahlam Tamimi, the proud mastermind of the Sbarro bombing.
We made a video back then, introducing Ehrenreich’s main
protagonists.
It seems that glorifying terror supporters like the Tamimis
is good business: for the 16th anniversary of the Sbarro bombing, Ehrenreich’s
book came out as a paperback, and – just like last year – the New York Times
is doing
its best to help Ehrenreich sell his book.
But it’s not just the New York Times that is urging
its readers to get Ehrenreich’s book. Already a few weeks ago, the Middle
East Monitor (MEMO), an Islamist site that organizes an annual “Palestine
Book Awards”-event, shortlisted
Ehrenreich’s book for this year’s awards – which is, no doubt, a well-deserved
honor for Ehrenreich.
I sincerely hope he will get the award. As I explained three
years ago, when veteran anti-Israel activist Ali Abunimah was honored by MEMO,
it’s a bit like a Hamas “Books-of-the-Year” award. In Abunimah’s case it was
particularly fitting that MEMO’s award presenter was Ang Swee Chai, who
once defended
her promotion of material produced by white supremacist and former Ku Klux Klan
Grand Wizard David Duke by explaining:
“I didn’t know who David Duke was,
or that he was connected to the Ku Klux Klan. I am concerned that if there is
any truth in the video, that Jews control the media, politics and banking, what
on earth is going on? I was worried.”
The lady who so emphatically shares the worries of
antisemites around the world remains
a “patron” of the “Palestine Book Awards”, and maybe Ehrenreich will be lucky
and have the honor to meet her.
Another “patron” of the “Palestine Book Awards” that
Ehrenreich might love to meet is Azzam
Tamimi. I don’t know if he’s related to the Tamimis Ehrenreich adores, but
he definitely shares
their enthusiasm for Palestinian terrorism and considers his close ties to
Hamas “a great honor.”
In any case, there can be no doubt that Ben Ehrenreich should
like the MEMO-crowd just as much as he likes the Tamimis: read MEMO’s
moving report
on the romance between convicted murderer Nizar Tamimi and convicted murderer
Ahlam Tamimi and you’ll have to admit that Ehrenreich himself couldn’t have
portrayed this union between two murderous terrorists in more sympathetic
terms.
So let’s all cross our fingers that Ben Ehrenreich’s paean
to the terror-loving Tamimis will get the Hamas Book Club award – he definitely
deserves it, and it would also be a fitting tribute to the good judgement of
the New York Times.