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Thursday, December 02, 2021

12/02 Links Pt1: 129 nations ignore Jewish ties to Temple Mount, call it solely Muslim; Crucial PA admission: UNRWA is a political, not a humanitarian organization

From Ian:

129 nations ignore Jewish ties to Temple Mount, call it solely Muslim
The United Nations General Assembly approved a resolution 129-11 on Wednesday, that disavowed Jewish ties to the Temple Mount and called it solely by its Muslim name of al-Haram al-Sharif.

The text, referred to as the “Jerusalem resolution,” is part of a push by the Palestinian Authority and the Arab states across the UN system to rebrand Judaism’s most holy site as an exclusively Islamic one.

The United States, which opposed the text, said that the omission of inclusive terminology for the site sacred to three faiths was of “real and serious concern.”

Located in the heart of Jerusalem's Old City, it is where the ancient Jewish Temple, stood 2,000 years ago, and it is the home of the al-Aqsa Mosque compound which is Islam's third holiest site.

“It is morally, historically and politically wrong for members of this body to support language that denies” both the Jewish and Christian connections to the Temple Mount and al-Haram al-Sharif, the US envoy told the UNGA.

The US has not been the only country to voice concern over the lack of inclusive language. In an attempt to ensure support for the resolution, its authors had made some small amendments since the UNGA last approved the resolution in 2018 by 148-11. That text referenced al-Haram al-Sharif twice, one in the action portion of the resolution and once in the introduction.

This time, the phrase al-Haram al-Sharif was mentioned only once in the introduction. Despite this shift, support for the resolution dropped, with the number of countries that abstained growing from 14 to 31.

Three years ago, all the European countries supported the text, this year a number of them changed their votes.

Hungary and the Czech Republic opposed the resolution, while Austria, Bulgaria, Denmark, Germany, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia abstained.

A British envoy said “the resolution adopted today refers to the holy sites in Jerusalem in purely Islamic terms without recognizing the Jewish terminology of Temple Mount.




This Anti-Israel "Special Committee" Must Be Shut Down
Former Reps. Shelley Berkley (D-Nev.), Dan Burton (R-Ind.) and Eliot Engel (D-NY)

At every session of the UN General Assembly, more than a dozen resolutions are passed to demonize Israel - more than against all other countries combined. One is the reauthorization of the mandate of and funding for the Special Committee to Investigate Israeli Human Rights Practices (SCIIHRP). Established in 1968, its sole purpose is to excoriate Israel before the court of world public opinion. Despite internationally recognized human rights violations occurring in numerous states, no other country has a "special committee" devoted to churning out harsh and inflammatory reports criticizing it.

The existence of such a body discredits the UN and is offensive to U.S. taxpayers, who pay close to 25% of the entire UN budget. The Abraham Accords have created dynamic partnerships between Israel and visionary, forward-looking Arab countries. Isolation of Israel and the fetishization of Palestinian victimhood is not conducive to peace, which can only come about through direct negotiations between the parties.
UN Watch: LIVE: The Future of UN Watch
On Wednesday, December 1, at 12 pm EST, UN Watch’s Fundraising Campaign concludes. Hillel Neuer will announce the total amount raised thanks to your help, and discuss the battles ahead for UN Watch.

About the Campaign:
UN Watch needs to raise $500,000 by December 1st to ensure the continuation of its vital work. We are turning to our social media community to help us reach our goal.

To take part in the campaign, all you have to do is make a $5 donation and inspire 5 friends to do the same so that we can reach our $500,000 target by the end of November. It might not sound like much, but if every one of our social media followers gives $5 and asks 5 friends to do the same, we will surely hit our goal.


Who’s Really Stopping a Palestinian State? Let’s Look at the Facts
In a recent piece for The Guardian, opinion columnist Owen Jones expresses his ire about a speech given by the UK Labour Party leader, Keir Starmer, to the Labour Friends of Israel.

In his op-ed, “Denied a state, Palestinians are now denied a say in their own future,” Jones manages to sidestep most of the salient facts surrounding the issue of Palestinian statehood, in an effort to hammer home his simplistic central message: Palestinians are victims, and Israel and its supporters are responsible.

Jones’ disregard for the truth is evident in his headline, which misleadingly implies that Israel is somehow responsible for Palestinians being “denied a state.”

Yet, he neglects to mention why such statehood has not yet been actualized — because the Palestinian leadership has repeatedly rejected all comprehensive peace proposals.

For example, at the Camp David Summit in 2000, then-US president Bill Clinton, with the backing of then-Israeli prime minister Ehud Barak, offered Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat a deal that would have seen 92 percent of the West Bank and all of the Gaza Strip put under Palestinian control, with a plan to award territorial compensation for the remaining eight percent.

In addition, eastern Jerusalem would have been designated the new state’s capital.

Unfortunately for millions of Palestinians, Arafat rejected the proposal and, instead, unleashed the Second Intifada, a campaign of suicide attacks that killed more than 1,000 Israelis, and injured thousands more.
CAIR Official: The Two-State Solution Is “Laughable,” Any Organization that Promotes It Is an Enemy
American activist Zahra Billoo, the executive-director of CAIR-SFBA said in a panel at the AMP Annual Conference that took place on November 27, 2021 that the two-state solution is “laughable” and any organization that supports it is an enemy. She told the audience that the Anti-Defamation League, Jewish Federation, “Zionist Synagogues,” and Hillel chapters on “our campuses” are not their friends. Billoo said that they will throw the Muslims under the bus. She further urged the audience to donate monthly to AMP, because if they pay U.S. taxes, this means that they financially support “apartheid” every month.

The panel was streamed live on the American Muslims for Palestine YouTube channel, and CAIR executive-director Nihad Awad also participated in the panel (for more information about Nihad Awad, see MEMRITV clips nos. 3536, 3701, and 5279). Other participants in the conference, which was held in Chicago on November 25-27, 2021, were Dr. Osama Abuirshaid (for more information, see MEMRI TV nos.9197, 9095, 8580, 5558, and 5487) Linda Sarsour (for more information about Sarsour, see MEMRITV clips nos. 6935, 6808, and 6111), Lamis Deek (for more information, see MEMRITV clip no. 3430), and Taher Herzallah (for more information, see MEMRITV clip no. 7071).


PMW: Crucial PA admission: UNRWA is a political, not a humanitarian organization
Donor countries should be concerned about what is happening with their money. The international community is giving UNRWA a billion dollars this year because it wants to solve the humanitarian needs of Palestinian refugee camps’ residents. However, contrary to the goals of the donors, the PA insists that UNRWA is a political organization serving the political goals of the PA and the PLO.

The PA Minister of Social Development Dr. Ahmed Majdalani recently told UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarone:
“UNRWA is not an institution that provides services to the refugees, but rather a political symbol of the right of return… UNRWA is the basic political address for the right of return and self-determination for the Palestinian refugees.”

[Al-Quds website, Oct. 27, 2021]

Fatah’s Commissioner of Refugee and UNRWA Affairs Hassan Ahmed confirmed that politics and not humanitarian needs is the essence of UNRWA:
“The right of return is a sacred right, individually and collectively, which has no statute of limitations... The refugees are not just those who were expelled from their land, but also all their offspring are refugees until Judgement Day. This is contrary to what the US wants: to empty the refugees of their meaning, thwart this, and turn the refugee commission into a humanitarian cause. Our cause is political and not humanitarian, because we have an identity of which we are proud. It is essential to return to our land and our homeland.”

[Official PA TV, Returning, Oct. 16, 2021]

At the International Ministerial Conference on UNRWA, PA Minister of Foreign Affairs Riyad Al-Malki also recently confirmed the political nature of the organization, focusing on the political so-called “right of return”:


Swiss-funded event featured song erasing all of Israel
Coordinator of the initiative Sa’id Abu Ghazza: “The Life Initiative at [Al-Aqsa] University is one of the events of culture, art, and communal involvement that is being carried out by the Abd Al-Muhaisen Al-Qattan Institution with funding from the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC).”

Lyrics: “Oh flying bird, circling around…
by Allah, oh traveling [bird], I burn with envy.
My country Palestine is beautiful.
Turn to Safed, and then to Tiberias,
and send regards to the sea of Acre and Haifa.
Don't forget Nazareth - the Arab fortress,
and tell Beit Shean about its people's return.”

[Official PA TV, Palestine This Morning, Nov. 6, 2021]


MEMRI: Article In Qatari Daily On The Islamic Tale Of Allah's Punishment Of The Jews By Changing Them Into Apes And Pigs
In his column in the Qatari daily Al-Sharq, 'Abdallah Al-'Amadi, former media advisor to the Qatari education minister, wrote about the importance of preaching good and forbidding evil. As a "point of departure," and in order to "clarify the approach," he discussed at length the well-known Islamic tale, mentioned in the Quran and the Hadith, according to which Allah transformed the Jews into apes and pigs as punishment for violating their Sabbath.

The story of the divine punishment of turning the Jews to apes and pigs is mentioned in the most important Islamic sources. The Quran mentions it in three verses: "... They are those whom Allah has cast aside and on whom His wrath has fallen and of whom He has made some as apes and swine..." (5:60); "...You have surely known the end of those from amongst you who transgressed in the matter of the Sabbath, in consequence of which we condemned them: Be ye like apes, despised" (2:65); and "when, instead of amending, they became more persistent in the pursuit of that which they were forbidden, we condemned them: Be ye as apes, despised" (7:166). In addition, the story is also mentioned in the reliable collections of hadiths Sahih Al-Muslim and Sahih Al-Bukhari.[1]

In his article in the Qatari daily, Al-'Amadi presents the story in which Allah transforms a group of Jews into apes after they disobey him by fishing on the Sabbath despite the prohibition on it. He adds that according to tradition, two other groups of Jews obeyed the Lord's decree and refrained from fishing on the Sabbath; the first group actively advised the rebellious ones to heed Allah, while the second group remained indifferent. Al-'Amadi states that the first group, that exhorted the wrongdoers to heed Allah, was spared punishment, and that this underlines the importance of and obligation to counsel and preach good and forbid evil.

The Islamic trope of the transformation of the Jews, or their distant forefathers, into apes and pigs features prominently in Arab antisemitism in the modern era. The reference to this traditional tale in the Qatari daily Al-Sharq demonstrates its prevalence.[2]
Finland's capital attack on Israel
It seems that there are still some politicians in Europe that haven’t learnt lessons from past atrocities.

The leading newspaper in Finland, Helsingin Sanomat, reported on recently that the city of Helsinki, the capital of Finland, intends to attack Israel with the help of its procurement lawyers. The story centers around a decision that the city government made on November 8 obliging city officials and lawyers to take actions to stop the city from cooperating with companies that “benefit from the illegal Israeli occupation” in Judea and Samaria which is 4,000 kilometers from Helsinki. Practically, this would mean mainly Israeli/Jewish-owned businesses that serve both Arabs and Jews in those areas.

The move had already been reviewed and rejected by the city’s legal department which determined that it was legally impossible to pursue, but nonetheless, red-green members of the city government, still dissatisfied with their response, insisted on a new vote in order to return it back to the lawyers for a new consideration. The city board subsequently approved the initiative by an 8-7 vote, with conservatives and right-wing parties opposing it. Helsingin Sanomat, was delighted with the decision, and praised politicians for their courage and values. This decision, taken by the city board members of the social democratic party, the Greens and the left alliance not only highlights their limited knowledge of history, but also demonstrates the fact that they have all adopted a strong antisemitic mindset, in which Israel - the only Jewish state in the world and the only democracy in the Middle East - is also the only country in which Helsinki seeks to impose sanctions. In addition to Israel, a possible boycott would primarily target companies owned or run by Jews. Does this sound familiar?
Elliott Abrams: The Uighurs and the Question of Muslim Solidarity
Twenty-five years ago, American Christians showed extraordinary solidarity with Christians half a world away and with whom they had nothing in common except their faith. As one study put it, “In the 1990s and early 2000s, the civil war in Sudan and the fate of Christians there became the abiding international preoccupation of US evangelicals."

Similarly, one can recall the decades of efforts by Israel to rescue Ethiopian Jews and bring them to the Jewish State. More than 85,000 Ethiopian Jews were resettled in Israel over the years.

This Christian and Jewish solidarity came to mind recently as I read a VOA news item entitled “Report: Beijing's Repression of Uyghurs Spans Globe.” The facts are obvious and have been for years; in 2018 a United Nations panel said it had credible evidence that a million Uighurs were being held in internment camps. As a CFR backgrounder states, “Much of the world has condemned China’s detention of Uyghurs in Xinjiang. UN officials have demanded access to the camps. The European Union has called on China to respect religious freedom and change its policies in Xinjiang.” In January 2021, then Secretary of State Mike Pompeo declared that China is committing crimes against humanity and genocide against Uyghurs; President Biden used the term genocide to refer to China’s abuses while campaigning, and Secretary of State Antony Blinken has affirmed Pompeo’s declaration.
Two Israelis Attacked, Car Set on Fire After Driving Into Ramallah
Palestinian rioters Wednesday night attacked two Israeli civilians and set their vehicle on fire after the pair stopped in the West Bank city of Ramallah on Wednesday night, Israel’s army said.

The two men were rescued by Palestinian security forces and reached a nearby checkpoint after sustaining minor injuries, before being turned over to Israeli authorities and released.

Footage of the incident shared online showed crowds of residents surrounding and looting the vehicle before setting it ablaze.

Initial Israeli media reports said the two men had mistakenly entered the city, which is located in the Palestinian Authority-controlled area officially prohibited to Israelis by military order. They were later questioned by Israel Police.

Israel’s N12 news reported the men were Breslov Hasidim, and quoted one as explaining during his interrogation that they had stopped at a gas station and were attempting to drive to the West Bank settlement of Hashmonaim.


Israeli Ministers Pledge Action After 21 Stone-Throwing Attacks on Buses in Negev Desert
Israeli ministers have decried an ongoing series of stone-throwing attacks on buses in the country’s southern Negev desert, saying this “terror” will no longer be tolerated, Israel’s N12 news outlet reported.

According to Israel’s main bus company Egged, there have been 21 stone-throwing attacks on buses throughout the northern Negev over the last three years.

Drivers have complained repeatedly of serious damage to their vehicles, as well as incidents that have been potentially life-threatening.

The motive in all cases is believed to be either nationalism or religious fundamentalism. The perpetrators have been residents of Bedouin villages in the area.

Egged emphasized that there are likely many more incidents that go unreported as they do not cause significant damage.

In a joint statement, Israeli Public Security Minister Omer Barlev and Transportation Minister Meirav Michaeli described the stoning attacks as “terror in every way,” adding, “we must act in order to bring the stone-throwers to justice.”

The ministers said they are working to determine next steps “to protect the security of bus drivers and all passengers,” and understand “the severity of these incidents,” which must be prevented “from occurring in the future.”
2 Arab residents of Lod indicted for shooting of Jewish man during May violence
Israeli security forces announced on Thursday the arrests of two residents of Lod in relation to a shooting in the city during a flare-up in violence in May.

Amsalem Hasouna and Iyad Hasouna, two Arab residents of Lod in their late 20s, have been arrested, according to the Shin Bet. The two men are relatives of Mousa Hasouna, who was shot to death in disputed circumstances a few days earlier.

The two men were indicted in Lod District Court for “serious offenses.” No further details were given in the statement.

The Shin Bet said that the shooting in question occurred on May 13 “during severe disturbances” during the 11-day conflict between Israel and Gaza, named Operation Guardian of the Walls. A Jewish civilian “was lightly-to-moderately wounded as a result of shots fired at a group of Jews on the street,” the security agency said.

The Israel Police and the Shin Bet carried out an investigation into the incident, and said that the two men were also involved in additional disturbances in Lod. The Shin Bet said it views “with utmost severity the involvement of Israeli citizens in terrorism,” and it will continue to investigate those involved in “all terrorist incidents” during the May violence.

But Arab citizens have alleged that Israel is pursuing Arab suspects much more doggedly than it is Jewish citizens who took part in the widespread violent clashes.
Libel: Israel is using “nerve gas,” against demonstrators, claims PA TV program director
Official PA TV program director Jubran Khalil: “The waste water that [the Israelis] use [to disperse demonstrations] … I think that they put chemicals into them. They have something lethal in them. The gas that they throw”

Official PA TV host: “Tear gas.”

Jubran Khalil: “This is nerve gas. You become limp. A person’s nerves become limp.”

[Official PA TV, A Lot of Sugar, Nov. 19, 2021]

Jubran Khalil directs the official PA TV program We Will Not Leave.


German Bank Closes Hamas/BDS Group Account
The German Postbank has confirmed that its account for the Hamas-linked Palestinian Community in Germany is no longer active. Postbank spokesman Oliver Rittmaier said, "You can be assured that we are not interested in maintaining relationships with extremist groups. When we discover such a relationship, we end it under applicable law."

According to a 2020 intelligence report from Berlin's domestic spy agency, the "Palestinian Community in Germany is an umbrella association for Palestinian organizations in Germany whose members overwhelmingly belong to Hamas or sympathize" with Hamas.
MEMRI: Former Knesset Member: The Zionists Tried to Write Off Jaffa, Haifa, Acre, Lod, and Ramla
Head of the Higher Arab Monitoring Committee in Israel and former member of Knesset Mohammad Barakeh said in a public address that was aired on Palestine TV on November 26, 2021 that Jaffa, Haifa, Acre, Lod, and Ramla came to the aid of Jerusalem in the recent May “Intifada.” He said that these cities were the center of the clashes with the “Zionist oppression forces,” even though the Zionists wrote them off. However, Barakeh, stated, these cities were part of Palestine in the past and will be part of Palestine once again.


MEMRI: Saudi Journalist Abdullah bin Bijad: Hamas Is a Murderous Political Organization
Saudi Journalist and researcher Abdullah bin Bijad said in a November 26, 2021 interview on MBC TV (Saudi Arabia) that Hamas is a murderous terrorist organization that only claims to represent the causes of Palestine, Jerusalem, and Islam, while in reality it is advancing Iranian plots to destroy and occupy the Arab world. He said that Hamas and its actions are political in nature, and not religious, and he criticized it for killing Palestinians and attacking journalists for the benefit of its political goals.


Hamas Leaders Reach Deal With Qatar, Egypt to Resume Subsidizing Public Salaries
Hamas leaders in the Gaza Strip reached an agreement with Qatar to resume subsidizing public workers’ salaries by sending fuel, a Hamas official told the AP on Tuesday.

Qatar was donating to the salaries of an estimated 50,000 government workers in Gaza until Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad started launching rockets towards Israeli civilian populations centers, which led to an 11-day conflict with Israel in May.

The new deal reached with Qatar and Egypt allows the Gulf state to send fuel to Gaza via Egypt. Hamas can then resell the fuel to cover its expenses, said the unnamed official.

According to the report, even with the Qatari money, the public workers still only receive around 55 percent of their salaries.

The Qatari aid is part of a temporary ceasefire deal brokered by Egypt.


Lebanon Likely to Receive Israeli Natural Gas
Egyptian gas could start flowing to Lebanon in the next two to three months, the U.S. State Department’s senior advisor for global energy security Amos Hochstein said in a CNBC interview earlier this week.

The natural gas would flow from Egypt to Lebanon through Jordan and Syria in a deal approved in October and brokered in part by the United States. Lebanon is in the midst of an electricity crisis, with rolling blackouts leaving most people in the country with just a few hours of electricity a day. Hochstein said he is hopeful that the gas will reach Lebanon before the country’s March elections, which come amid an economic recession and political crisis in the country.

But unspoken in Hochstein’s Monday interview — and in public comments about the deal from leaders in the four Arab nations — is that the natural gas reaching Lebanon will almost certainly include not just Egyptian but also Israeli gas.

“I think it is the worst-kept secret in town, and in fact, it’s not secret anymore. Everybody in the region knows,” said David Schenker, who served as assistant secretary of state for near Eastern affairs in former President Donald Trump’s administration. “Hezbollah is well aware of this, and once again, they’re in a difficult position. They can’t say no. Beggars, in this case, can’t be choosers.”
MEMRI: Egyptian Researcher Ahmed Abdou Maher, Sentenced To Prison For Criticizing Islamic Jurisprudents: I Am Criticizing Their Blood-Soaked Ideology, Not Islam Itself; I Do Not Want Presidential Amnesty – I Demand To Be Declared Innocent
On November 25, 2021, BBC Arabic (U.K.) aired an interview with Egyptian lawyer, researcher, and writer Ahmed Abdou Maher, who was recently sentenced to five years in Egyptian prison for criticizing Islam in his book, "How the Imams' Jurisprudence Is Leading the Nation Astray." Maher told the interviewer that his book doesn't include a single word of extremism, blasphemy, or incitement against Islam, and that it only criticizes Islam's jurisprudents for their "blood-soaked ideology."

He criticized Islamic scholars that follow Maliki, Bukhai, Safi'i, Hanafi, and other schools of Islamic thought, saying that they espouse the killing of apostates, homosexuals, adulterers, people who don't pray, people who curse the Prophet Muhammad, and prisoners of war. He also said that they espouse punishments such as the chopping of people's limbs and beheading people. Abdou Maher elaborated that the jurisprudents who adhere to these schools of thought consider anything that is outside of their "box" to be heresy, and he said that they have the ears of people in Egypt's judicial system and are trying to turn Egypt into a religious state. He said that these schools of thought do not have a monopoly on what Islam is, and that Egypt's president should declare that he is innocent.

Abdou Maher also bemoaned the fact that there are many terrorist organizations and that Iraq, Syria, Yemen, Libya, and Afghanistan have all been destroyed. For more about Ahmed Abdou Maher, see MEMRI TV Clips No. 8473, No. 5999, No. 5669, No. 5409, and No. 5234.

"In My Book, There Is Not A Single Word Of Extremism [Or] A Single Word Of Blasphemy Against The Religion Of Islam... [My Book] Provokes The Jurisprudents Because Of The Blood-Soaked Ideology They Espouse"

Journalist: "[The court] ruled that lawyer Ahmed Abdou Maher should serve five years in prison, after he was convicted of undermining the peace of society, provoking strife, and attacking the religion of Islam, in his book How the Imams' Jurisprudence Is Leading the Nation Astray."

Ahmed Abdou Maher: "In my book, there is not a single word of extremism, a single word of blasphemy against the religion of Islam, a single word of ethnic strife, or a single word that provokes the masses. But it provokes the jurisprudents. Yes. It provokes the jurisprudents because of the blood-soaked ideology they espouse, by killing apostates, killing people who do not pray, killing homosexuals, killing adulterers, killing people who curse the Prophet Muhammad, and beheading them even if they repent, as well as killing prisoners of war, gouging out their eyes, and chopping off their hands and feet, and so on and so forth.
It’s too soon to write the obituary of the anti-Iran alliance in the Middle East
It should be noted that while there is undoubtedly a sense of flux in the strategic picture of the region at present, deriving from the US change of focus, in the medium to long term this is likely to provide an additional advantage for Israel. Israel is the only country within this group of states that is able to provide a credible military threat against Iran, and specifically against the Iranian nuclear programme. It is becoming increasingly apparent to regional powers that the US, despite occasional statements by senior officials, has no intention of laying down a serious military threat to the Iranians, in the event that the current push towards a nuclear weapons capacity continues. In the absence of this threat, there is a risk that Teheran may see no disincentive toward pushing on to a threshold nuclear weapons capacity, while continuing in its efforts to seed proxies and exploit them for both political and military purposes throughout the region.

Only Israel can provide such a ‘plan B’. This is not, of course, to underestimate the very serious apparent limitations to Israeli options in this regard. A single operation to destroy the Iranian nuclear programme, of the type mounted against Iraq in 1981 and Syria in 2007 is probably not possible vis a vis the Iranian programme, because of its spread out and well defended nature. But Israel, in its current campaign against Iranian efforts in Syria, Lebanon and sometimes also Iraq, is demonstrating currently the only real hard power pushback to Iranian attempts at regional domination. The UAE, Saudi Arabia and other countries threatened by the prospect of Iranian hegemony, are likely to find an obvious utility in the maintenance of this pushback, particularly in a situation where an alternative hard power deterrent element is not available.

In this regard, it should be noted that while it is often stated that Iran has, through its use of proxies, succeeded in partially ‘surrounding’ Israel – through its control or partial control of proxies in Gaza, Lebanon, Syria and Iraq – it is also the case that Israel appears to be following a diplomatic strategy which seeks similarly to surround Iran. This is attempted not, as in the Iranian case, by organising proxies, but rather by seeking alliance and closer relations with countries in close proximity to Iran. Such countries include Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain, and, notably, Azerbaijan, to Iran’s north.

The strategic contest between Iran and its allies, and the loose, interests-based alliance of West-aligned countries is thus set to continue in the Middle East. The contest is based on concrete issues, and on the impossibility for West-aligned countries of accommodating Iranian ambitions, because of the extent and scope of those ambitions – both in the nuclear field, in Iran’s efforts to subvert and dominate Arab states, and in its ambitions to destroy Israel. It is important to understand the deep rationale behind this process, and not to be caught up by momentary developments into concluding either that the anti-Iran alliance is about to break up, or, conversely, that it has greater depth, solidity and potential than it in fact possesses.
JPost Editorial: Israel must work to rein in Iran's nuclear ambitions
As a seventh round of international talks among the UK, France, China, Russia, Germany and Iran on Tehran’s nuclear program resumed in Vienna on Monday after a five-month hiatus, Israel’s leaders spoke out in official statements released by the Government Press Office in English. Although their goal is essentially the same – to halt Iran’s nuclear ambitions – they conveyed slightly different messages.

It is worth publishing them for the record, starting with Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, who issued the following statement, articulating a tough policy not dissimilar from that of his predecessor, Benjamin Netanyahu:
“Today, Iran will be arriving at negotiations in Vienna with a clear goal: To end sanctions in exchange for almost nothing. Iran won’t just keep its nuclear program; from today, they’ll be getting paid for it. Iran doesn’t hide its intentions. Just a couple of days ago, the senior command of Iran’s Armed Forces declared, and I quote, ‘We will not back off from the annihilation of Israel, not even one millimeter.’”

Just this week, the Iranian regime shot its own people on the streets of Isfahan for daring to protest the lack of water in their country. Yes, they shot their own citizens just for being thirsty. Such a murderous regime should not be rewarded.

“Despite Iran’s violations and undermining of the nuclear inspections, it will be arriving at the negotiating table in Vienna, and there are those who think they deserve to have their sanctions removed and hundreds of billions of dollars poured right into their rotten regime. They’re wrong.
Mossad recruited Iranian scientists to blow up nuclear facility - report
The Mossad was behind the destruction of one of Iran's most secure and important nuclear facilities, and they did this by discreetly recruiting a team of Iranian nuclear scientists, according to a new report by the Jewish Chronicle.

According to the report, as many as 10 nuclear scientists agreed to help destroy the centrifuge hall at the Natanz nuclear facility in April. However, it seems they did not know they were doing this on behalf of Israel, but rather for other dissident groups.

Ultimately, the Natanz explosion caused significant destruction at the Natanz nuclear plant.

From the start, Iranian media and officials accused Israel of being behind the incident, something Israel has never commented on, despite originally referring to it as an accident. Others further speculated that the US was somehow involved

However, according to the JC, the destruction of the Natanz centrifuges was conducted by the Mossad alone, and had been in the works for years. According to the report, explosives were hidden as early as 2019. Further, an armed drone was smuggled into the Islamic Republic piece by piece in order to eventually launch missiles at another site in Karaj.


Iran starts enriching with advanced centrifuges while stalling in Vienna talks
Iran took further steps to advance its nuclear program, the International Atomic Energy Agency said on Wednesday, as Iranian diplomats said they won’t rush on negotiations with world powers in Vienna to limit its uranium enrichment.

The IAEA reported that Iran started the process of enriching uranium to 20% purity with advanced centrifuges at its Fordow facility, which is buried inside a mountain.

Iran fed uranium hexafluoride feedstock enriched to up to 5% into a cascade, or cluster, of 166 IR-6 centrifuges at Fordow to enrich it further to up to 20%, the IAEA stated.

The move is likely to raise tensions in the negotiations intended to restore the return of Iran and the US to the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action nuclear deal.

Israeli officials, including Foreign Minister Yair Lapid in meetings with UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson and French President Emmanuel Macron this week, have warned that Iran is trying to stall so that it can continue to advance its uranium enrichment to the point at which an agreement restricting it would be irrelevant.
Iran demands all sanctions to be lifted

Killing of top scientist didn’t slow Iran’s nuke work, official tells Israeli TV
Israel’s alleged assassination of top Iranian nuclear scientist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh did not have the desired effect of slowing down Iran’s nuclear work, an official told Israeli television on Tuesday.

“The killing of Fakhrizadeh a year ago did not brake Iran’s progress as was hoped,” the anonymous Israeli official was quoted as saying by Channel 12 news. “The current situation is the most advanced that Iran has ever reached.”

Therefore, the official added, “there is a huge global Israeli effort — both publicly and behind the scenes — to push for an upgraded agreement as well as simultaneously building a large and significant attack plan.”

Fakhrizadeh, identified by Israel as the father of Iran’s rogue nuclear weapons program, was assassinated last year in a sophisticated hit reportedly led by a Mossad team.

Iran has accused Israel of carrying out the hit and threatened revenge. Israel has not publicly commented on the allegation that it was responsible, though former Mossad chief Yossi Cohen confirmed earlier this year that Fakhrizadeh was long in the spy agency’s sights.

The report came a week after The New York Times quoted United States officials as saying that they warned Israel that its attacks against the Iranian nuclear program were counterproductive and have enabled Tehran to rebuild an even more efficient enrichment system.

The unnamed official spoke a day after the resumption of negotiations between Iran and world powers to restore the 2015 nuclear deal, which kicked off in Vienna after a nearly six-month suspension in talks.


MEMRI: Iranian Security Forces Crack Down on Protestors in Isfahan by Setting Tents on Fire, Using Tear Gas
Between November 25 and 27, 2021, the Irankargar YouTube channel posted several videos showing Iranian security forces cracking down on farmers and civilians in Isfahan who were protesting about the Zayanderud river being dry as a result of government policies. The videos, which were filmed by protesters at the dry riverbed, showed police officers in riot gear, some of whom also had motorcycles, trying to disperse the crowds, shooting tear gas into the crowd, and firing other weapons. The videos also showed burning tents, and protestors are heard saying that the security forces are the ones that set fire to the tents. In one of the videos, a woman is heard saying: “There are no [real] men in this country! [Otherwise the police] wouldn’t be so impudent!”









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