Sunday, February 20, 2022

02/20 Links: Tzipi Livni opens up about her Gulf visits before the Abraham Accords; Hamas doesn’t need Sheikh Jarrah or Jerusalem to start a war

From Ian:

Tzipi Livni opens up about her Gulf visits before the Abraham Accords
Long before “Hatikvah,” Israel’s national anthem, played openly in Abu Dhabi or Manama, long before Israeli military jets took part in training exercises with Gulf countries, and long before normalization agreements were signed at the White House, there was one Israeli leader engaging in quiet, and very secret, diplomacy with the Arab world: Tzipi Livni.

Livni, 63, who served in a variety of Israeli government positions, including deputy prime minister, foreign minister and justice minister, between 2001 and 2014, also led the country through several rounds of peace negotiations with the Palestinians. It was this role – where she worked opposite the Palestinian Authority’s chief negotiator, the late Saeb Erekat – that led her to forge warm ties with multiple Arab leaders, some of whom are now at the forefront of the Abraham Accords, the U.S.-mediated normalization agreements between Israel and four Arab countries.

In a recent interview with Jewish Insider, the former Israeli lawmaker downplayed more than a decade of covert meetings and conversations with country leaders, foreign ministers and other representatives of the Emirates, Bahrain, Qatar, even Saudi Arabia. And while former President Donald Trump’s son-in-law and senior advisor Jared Kushner has twice been nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize as one of the architects of the Abraham Accords, it is possible that this entire process might not have happened if not for the groundwork laid by Livni.

“Truthfully, I didn’t think that Kushner could do this; it’s really a huge achievement. I mean, to have these agreements without the Palestinians, it really surprised me when I saw the news. It is a real game-changer,” Livni said during the interview at her Tel Aviv home. “[Kushner] deserves all the credit he is getting.”

Today, relations between Israel and the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Morocco are out in the open, even flourishing. Just this week, Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett made history as the first Israeli premier to travel to the Gulf state of Bahrain. In January, Israeli President Isaac Herzog proudly met with Abu Dhabi’s Crown Prince Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed, following similar visits by Bennett and Foreign Minister Yair Lapid to the United Arab Emirates.

Livni said that she was as surprised as anyone when the White House announced the agreements in August 2020, although, she noted, there were some signs of a regional sea change. She recalled two key incidents several months before that momentous announcement, and the subsequent signing of the Accords on the White House lawn in September 2020, that made her realize attitudes were shifting.

“In 2019, not long after I quit politics, I was invited to attend a conference in Bahrain,” Livni said. “It was an international conference, but the event was sponsored by Bahraini officials, and I arrived there openly with an Israeli passport.”

“For the first time ever, I held a public meeting with [Bahrain’s Foreign Minister Khalid bin Ahmed] Al Khalifa, and we even took a photo together,” she continued. “It felt very normal and that was something I was not used to.”
Jewish Life More Visible in Gulf Countries as AGJC Celebrates First Anniversary
Rabbi Elie Abadie, spiritual leader of the AGJC, says, ‘Education is practically the number one priority of any Jewish community. ... The establishment of a school is of utmost priority for us.’

Jews have resided in the Arab Gulf region for centuries – in parts of the region, for millennia – but their recent history has seen a sea change with the establishment, in 2021, of the Association of Gulf Jewish Communities. While each country has its own flavor and experience, suddenly, Jewish community services are now more readily available throughout the region than they ever have been before. The Media Line’s Felice Friedson sat down with Rabbi Elie Abadie, the United Arab Emirates-based spiritual leader of the AGJC, and AGJC President Ebrahim Daoud Nonoo, who lives in Bahrain, for an extensive interview. This is followed by an interview with Rafael Schwartz, an AGJC board member who lives in Kuwait. The organization is active in Oman, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia, as well.

The Media Line: We’re a region which prides itself on longevity and its ancient roots. Much has happened in the modern Gulf. The Abraham Accords was a game-changer in creating an environment to expose Jewish life in the Middle East. One year ago, the AGJC – the Association of Gulf Jewish Communities – was inaugurated. Joining me today is Rabbi Elie Abadie, the senior and resident rabbi from the UAE. And also with me is Ebrahim Daoud Nonoo, who is the president of the AGJC, and chairman of the board of the House of Ten Commandments. Rabbi Abadie, in the UAE, and of course, Mr. Nonoo in Bahrain, thank you gentleman for joining me today!

Ebrahim Daoud Nonoo: Pleasure! Pleasure!

Rabbi Elie Abadie: Thank you! Thank you! Thank you, Felice!

TML: One year later, [it’s] very exciting. No one would have thought that we would have seen this moment. Many people in the world probably thought that the Jewish community has dwindled [and] there’s no news, but what can you share. Let’s start with Rabbi Abadie.

Rabbi Elie Abadie: Well, certainly at least here in the UAE, the Jewish community has doubled in size since the Abraham Accords, and those are the number of people that are active in the community. There’s certainly many more Jews living in the UAE that are not very active in the community, and so the actual number is not very well known, but there’s certainly … the active amount of people has really doubled since the Abraham Accords.
Call Me Back (podcast): With all eyes on Putin, enter Iran — a conversation in Jerusalem
“Shadow Strike: Inside Israel’s Secret Mission to Eliminate Syrian Nuclear Power”:https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/shadow-strike-yaakov-katz/1129520355

“Weapon Wizards – How Israel Became a High-Tech Military Superpower”:

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-weapon-wizards-yaakov-katz/1123749307


Foreign Ministry issues fresh call for Israelis in Ukraine to leave immediately
The Foreign Ministry on Saturday issued a fresh call for Israelis in Ukraine to immediately leave the country, amid growing Western warnings of a looming Russian invasion.

The ministry made the appeal after holding a situational assessment and following talks that director-general Alon Ushpiz held with unspecified figures at the Munich Security Conference.

A Foreign Ministry statement also cited “the events in eastern Ukraine,” apparently referring to intensifying clashes there between Ukrainian forces and Russian-backed separatists.

“An eruption [of war] will be quick and severe,” the statement said.

The ministry said it decided to keep Israeli Ambassador Michael Brodsky in Kyiv to assist Israelis seeking to leave. He and embassy staff will open the consular section on Sunday “to provide travel documents to citizens that require this,” according to the statement.

The Foreign Ministry also said it was keeping tabs on the decisions by the US and Britain to move their embassies in Kyiv to the city of Lviv, “with the aim of safeguarding the lives of the State of Israel’s envoys in Ukraine while providing a response to Israeli citizens.”

The Foreign Ministry issued a travel warning for Ukraine last weekend and urged Israelis in the country to immediately leave, a call repeated throughout the week by Israeli officials. These pleas have been met with a mixed response.


Palestinians will have 'an entity,' not a state, says Gantz
In the future, the Palestinian would be an entity, but not a full-fledged state, Defense Minister Benny Gantz told the Munich Security Conference on Sunday.

"Eventually we will find ourselves in a two-entity solution, in which we respect the Palestinian sovereignty and governance, but yet we will be respected for our security needs," he said.

The moderator, Souad Mekhennet, senior security writer at The Washington Post Souad Mekhennet, pushed him on his choice of words, "entities" and not "states," given that the normative international discourse on a resolution to the conflict is often two-states. This would involve the creation of a Palestinian state, alongside the already existing Israeli one.

"Did you say a two-state solution is possible?" the moderator asked.

Gantz corrected the moderator, to explained that he had carefully chosen to speak of two entities and not two states, by way of underscoring his rejection of an Israeli state at the pre-1967 lines. Israel's Defense Minister Benny Gantz is seen addressing a townhall in Munich, Germany, on February 20, 2022. (credit: Munich Security Conference) Israel's Defense Minister Benny Gantz is seen addressing a townhall in Munich, Germany, on February 20, 2022. (credit: Munich Security Conference)

To speak of a "two state solution takes us to a former framework. It's a phase that gives the illusions of 1967 with the border lines, etc. and things that cannot happen.

"This is why I said two-entity solution that we would verify with one another how we can ensure the Palestinian rights on one hand" while also safeguarding Israel's security needs on the other, Gantz said.

Only once the issue of Palestinian sovereignty and Israeli security is resolved can one move forward with reference that would allow for a final resolution of the conflict, Gantz said.
Israel Records Fewest Daily Covid Cases in Over a Month
Israel logged 12,562 new Covid cases on Saturday, the lowest single-day tally since January 4, according to the latest update to the Health Ministry’s website.

The reproduction ratio of the virus was at 0.67, indicating a further decline in morbidity and the pace of the spread.

According to the Ministry, 822 patients were hospitalized in serious condition, including 256 critical patients on artificial lung ventilation.

The death toll, as of Saturday night, was at 9,841; it is widely estimated that it would pass the 10,000 mark by the end of the month.

The declining morbidity led the Israeli government to announce it will soon roll back the health curbs that are currently in place, including vaccination passports, yet excluding the mask mandate in closed spaces that will remain in place.
Hamas doesn’t need Sheikh Jarrah or Jerusalem to start a war
Three pictures this week told the Israeli story. The first came on Sunday, when the rabble-rouser member of Knesset and former Kach activist Itamar Ben-Gvir decided to open a temporary office in the east Jerusalem neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah.

Ben-Gvir knew what he was doing and the attention it would gain him. Yes, a Jewish family in the neighborhood had been attacked, and the police were proving to be – yet again – ineffective; but setting up an office there was not done purely to safeguard the family. He wanted action, and that is what he got. The concern that Sheikh Jarrah could lead to another conflict with Hamas – like how the terrorist group used the neighborhood in May – means nothing to Ben-Gvir.

The second image happened on Monday, when Prime Minister Naftali Bennett flew to Bahrain and became the first Israeli leader to officially visit the tiny Persian Gulf country. Bennett was received by honor guards and with honor wherever he went, including the playing of “Hatikvah” at the palace of the Bahraini crown prince. It was Israeli diplomatic might at its best.

The third image was shown on Wednesday, when Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi visited the Knesset. One of the most powerful politicians in the United States, Pelosi stood before the Israeli parliament and explained how the formation of the State of Israel was the greatest accomplishment of the 20th century. “The greatest”! Not insignificant words.

The three images were a piece of Israel.

In Sheikh Jarrah we saw what happens when there is a lack of police enforcement, and when the government allows pockets of lawlessness to fester. Instigators like Ben-Gvir decide to move in and violence erupts. It is the same story in the Negev, in Israeli Arab towns, and in some of the more isolated hilltops in Judea and Samaria.

The other two images portray Israel’s diplomatic prowess. There was the prime minister openly visiting a country that 18 months ago did not have formal ties with Israel, and a day later we see the speaker of the House visiting the Knesset.
Ben-Dror Yemini: Israel's battle for Sheikh Jarrah only serves Palestinian interests
The fight over Sheikh Jarrah is no longer a private legal matter, it is a state, political affair, a bleeding wound that has become a focal point in international campaigns against Israel in recent years.

The vast majority of the claims made by the anti-Israel brigade usually come with great counterarguments. On the Sheikh Jarrah matter, however, there are no convincing arguments. Even Israel's allies, and there are many, can understand that prolonging the battle over the contentious East Jerusalem neighborhood only harms the Jewish state.

The focus of this issue is no longer the legal claim of Jews to have their property returned. The Palestinians in the neighborhood rejected all settlement proposals that were laid out for them in court because they know that the Sheikh Jarrah saga has become potent fuel to light the anti-Israeli propaganda.

The Palestinians must be complete idiots to receive millions of dollars as compensation, while continuing the propaganda can bring them hundreds of millions more.

But Israel has but succumbed to the stubborn bunch who demand "rights" instead of expropriating the territory and extinguishing the fire because that is what the national interest requires. And every visit by far-right legislator Itamar Ben-Gvir to the neighborhood is yet another precious gift that adds more fuel to said propaganda.

But "hold on," the extreme right-wing members, say. This is the story of the Zionist movement. We made Aliyah, we settled, and we built, we are the true successors of "Tower and Stockade" - a settlement method used by Zionist settlers in Mandatory Palestine. This is how the idea of a kibbutz was established and this is how Israel was born despite Arab resistance which still continues to this day.

However, there is no bigger lie than that. Zionism is a result not just of Jewish longing for Zion, but also of persecution and pogroms. We were refugees in those days, until the decision to establish the State of Israel, we didn't evict anyone. We bought the lands, we redeemed the lands, and we fought for the fundamental right that many nations fought for: the right to self-determination, to establish a homeland for the Jewish people.
Clans filled vacuum created by PA in Hebron, Fatah official tells ‘Post’
The Palestinian Authority security forces are capable of restoring law and order to the areas in Hebron that are under their control, but they are not doing enough, Hatem Shaheen, a Fatah official in the city, said on Sunday.

Shaheen, who is also a practicing lawyer, told The Jerusalem Post that the recent wave of violence between feuding clans has had a negative impact on the economic and security situation in Hebron.

Palestinian residents of the city are thinking of moving out because of the deteriorating security situation, Shaheen said.

In the past few weeks, gunmen belonging to the Ja’bari and Uwaiwi clans have clashed in different parts of the city.

Dozens of businesses and vehicles were torched during the clashes between the rival clans. At least four Hebron residents were injured by gunfire, according to a source in the Hebron Municipality.

A number of truces reached between the clans over the past month collapsed shortly after they were announced through social media platforms.

Attempts by leaders of other large clans in Hebron to end the street fighting have also failed.

Earlier this month, Sheikh Raed Salah, head of the Islamic Movement – Northern Branch in Israel arrived in Hebron to try and arrange a “ceasefire” between the warring clans. It’s not clear at this stage whether Salah was successful in his mission.
PMW: PA/Fatah: Terror is the "path to victory," Dead terrorists “are our heroes… who illuminate the path for our people… We all need to be like [them],”
Three young terrorists who had carried out several shooting attacks against Israelis and were planning an imminent additional attack were killed in Nablus by Israeli forces earlier this month. Ever since, officials of the Fatah Movement – the leading political party in the PA, run by Mahmoud Abbas - have been busy reconfirming that the terror activities in which the three were engaged constitute the right “path to victory” and that there is “no other option.”

In other words, the top leaders of the PA have been endorsing continued terror against Israel and calling on the Palestinian public to engage in it.

At a memorial event for the three terrorists, Deputy Chairman of the Fatah Commission of Mobilization and Organization Abd Al-Mun’im Hamdan Abu Al-Mundhir stressed that they are “heroes” and that their terrorism is “the path to victory.” He also encouraged other Palestinians to follow in their footsteps, saying: “We all need to be like these [three] young people”: Deputy Chairman of the Fatah Commission of Mobilization and Organization Abd Al-Mun'im Hamdan Abu Al-Mundhir: “These three heroes (i.e., terrorists) who acted for their principles, goals, and commitments, these three heroes who were always ready, these three heroes who gave the criminal occupation a headache – they are our heroes, as are all our Martyrs, prisoners, and wounded. They are the heroes of our people. They are the symbols of our people’s struggle. They are the ones who illuminate the path for our people. We the Palestinian people, the people of determination and will, are determined to continue their path on the path to victory, Allah willing... We all need to be like these [three] young people. We must not stop our struggle. This is the path to victory, and there is no other option.”

[Official Fatah Facebook page, Feb. 10, 2022]




JCPA: Nasrallah Flexes His Muscles against Israel on the Eve of Dramatic Parliamentary Elections in Lebanon
Two months ago, Nasrallah secretly visited Tehran, meeting with leader Ali Khamenei and senior commanders of the Revolutionary Guards and the Quds Force to discuss options and responses in case Israel attacked Iran’s nuclear facilities, as well as coordination between Iran and Hizbullah in this scenario. Iran’s directives to Hizbullah in the event of such an attack on its nuclear facilities are clear, sharp, without any other interpretation, and without the need for additional orders: launch long-range missiles at Tel Aviv and strategic targets deep inside Israel.

Nasrallah, meanwhile, defiantly called on Jews to leave Israel and return to their home countries, adding mockingly that “we are ready to bear the cost of their tickets.”

Hizbullah is in the thick of preparations for parliamentary elections in Lebanon this May. Hizbullah stresses that it seeks to hold the elections on time and rejects the possibility of delaying them. Hizbullah is concerned about the possibility of a decline in the electoral power of the National Patriotic Party, its ally in the Christian camp. Hizbullah appears to be working to strengthen its ties with the Christian camp and with its Shiite allies, led by Amal’s leader, Nabih Berry.

At the same time, Hizbullah is stepping up its attacks on the United States and particularly the involvement of the American ambassador in Beirut in internal Lebanese politics. The U.S. Embassy is accused of aiding and encouraging NGOs that work against Hizbullah, involvement in Lebanon’s economy, and being the cause of Lebanon’s financial crisis. American military assistance, and in particular the American financial assistance to pay the salaries of Lebanese army soldiers and officers, do not lower the height of Hizbullah’s flames of criticism. Ironically, the aid is welcome and most appreciated since it strengthens the Lebanese army, an ally of Hizbullah.
Iran MPs Put Forth Conditions for Reviving Nuclear Deal
Iranian lawmakers have laid out six conditions for the revival of the 2015 Iran nuclear deal with global powers in a letter to President Ebrahim Raisi published on Sunday, the country’s official IRNA news agency reported.

The letter, signed by 250 out of 290 parliamentarians, stated that US and European parties should guarantee that they would not exit a restored agreement, nor trigger the “snapback mechanism” under which sanctions on Iran would be immediately reinstated if it violates nuclear compliance.

The hardline-led parliament has not voted on the proposed conditions and Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who enjoys the support of hardliners, has the final say on Iran’s nuclear policy and all other matters of state.

“We have to learn a lesson from past experiences and put a red line on the national interest by not committing to any agreement without obtaining necessary guarantees first,” lawmakers said in the letter.

The statement comes in the midst of final steps to revive a 2015 nuclear agreement in Vienna, which could lead to an agreement “very soon,” according to a senior European Union official.
Seth Frantzman: Iran’s 'verbal' war against Israel continues
Iran seems to come out with new threats and verbal bashing of Israel every day. From anger over claims that Israel overflies Saudi airspace, to bashing Israel for “child killing,” the Iranian media-military verbal onslaught is continuous.

Last week, during a visit to Bandar Abbas, a port city and main base of the Iranian Navy, Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Commander Maj.-Gen. Hossein Salami said Iran’s naval units were ready for any confrontation. “We thank God Almighty that with the victory of the Islamic Revolution, the oppressors and the arrogant fled our land,” he said.

Salami slammed “colonialists” who had tried to defeat Iran, and he bashed the United States.

“We have grounded our enemies on land, sea and air,” he said. He didn’t mention Israel directly, but the context was clear: Iran has been able to threaten the US and US partners in the region.

Over the weekend, Iran’s Tasnim News Agency complained that Israel was able to fly over Saudi Arabia in a “military plane.”

“For the second time in less than a month, Saudi Arabia reopened its airspace to an Israeli military official,” Tasnim reported. This was a reference to IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Aviv Kohavi flying to the Singapore Air Show.

Tasnim also complained about Defense Minister Benny Gantz flying to Bahrain over Saudi Arabia.

“Earlier, Zionist media reported that Israeli President [Isaac] Herzog had arrived in the United Arab Emirates on an official visit from Saudi airspace,” it reported.
Gantz warns of Iranian drones, says any new nuke deal must be enforced and built on
Defense Minister Benny Gantz on Sunday warned of rising Iranian aggression in the Middle East as Tehran and the world powers were reportedly set to finalize a fresh agreement to curb Iran’s nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief.

“Iranian aggression is rising — not just in the nuclear program but also in its regional attacks. Iran takes over failed states, forcing them to defend Iranian interests while committing severe human rights violations,” Gantz said, speaking at the Munich Security Conference.

The defense minister’s remarks came as American, Iranian and other international officials indicated that a renewed nuclear agreement between the world powers and Iran was imminent. Former US president Donald Trump abrogated the 2015 nuclear deal in 2018, imposing fresh sanctions on Tehran, which in turn began systematically violating the accord, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action.

Since US President Joe Biden’s inauguration, the US has been working — through European intermediaries — to negotiate a mutual return to the nuclear deal with Tehran, as the Iranians have regularly stalled and continued violating the 2015 deal, enriching uranium to 60% purity, improving centrifuges, and expanding and fortifying nuclear facilities.

In his speech, Gantz said any new deal with Iran must be rigorously enforced and should be built upon to ensure that Tehran never becomes a nuclear-threshold state, capable of producing a nuclear weapon quickly.

The defense minister also demanded an end to Iran’s efforts to develop nuclear-capable ballistic missiles, which was banned under the 2015 JCPOA but was not subject to the same levels of enforcement as directly nuclear-related issues.


Nazi terminology is being rebranded as 'human rights'
Over the last two years, tens of nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) involved in anti-Israel advocacy have banded together in a campaign to accuse Israel of apartheid. This offensive term, used by international NGOs like Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch (HRW), and Israeli NGOs like B’Tselem, is aimed at advancing a narrative of unparalleled Israeli immorality and calling for the dismantling of the Jewish state. Along the way, these NGOs hope to promote demonization of Israel through BDS and lawfare, including in the International Criminal Court (ICC).

While most scrutiny has detailed the offensiveness and inaccuracy of the terminology apartheid, many have overlooked an even more poisonous phrase that appears in publications from the three NGOs mentioned above. Amnesty, HRW, and B’Tselem use the terms Jewish supremacy and Jewish domination. These terms echo antisemitic language used by the Third Reich, the Nazi Party and contemporary neo-Nazis.

The trope of Jewish supremacy, an antisemitic term found in the title of B’Tselem’s apartheid report, gained prominence during the Third Reich. Books on the subject of Jewish power, Jewish imperialism and Jewish world domination were distributed in pre-World War II Germany, propagating the belief that Jewish supremacy would be defeated by a savior, Adolf Hitler. The phrase was often used to indoctrinate young Germans, as demonstrated in a slide from a Hitler Youth educational presentation proclaiming “Hitler breaks Jewish supremacy with his movement.”

In 1940, following the premiere of the preeminent antisemitic Nazi propaganda film The Eternal Jew, the Reich Security Service published a memo reviewing the movie, stating, “The cartographic and statistical representations about the spread of Judaism (the comparison with the rats was emphasized as particularly impressive) and about the expansion of its influence in all areas of life and in all countries of the world was noted. Particular attention was noted about the acceptance and reception of Jews in the USA. It is surprising how openly the Jewish influence and the Jewish supremacy in the USA are at display.”

In 2003, David Duke, America’s leading white supremacist, also adopted this theme. In Jewish Supremacism: My Awakening to the Jewish Question, Duke claimed, “The truth is that the Zionists not only seek Jewish supremacism over the hapless Palestinians; they seek supremacism over all of us no matter what our race or nationality. It’s not just America they want supremacy over, it’s Canada, Britain, France, Germany, Russia and every other nation upon the earth.”
NYU Panel: Obliterate America and Israel
Erakat claimed falsely that Israel existed merely as recompense for the Nazi Holocaust genocide against the Jews during World War II, rather than Jewish national liberation in their ancestral homeland. "Western civilization expects of Palestinians" to "just disappear to make up for this canonical human rights violation in the Western civilizational framework" as a "sacrificial lamb," she stated. Such Eurocentric analysis ignores that half of Israel's Jewish population has roots in the flight and expulsion of Mizrachi Jews from oppressive Muslim societies in the Middle East and North Africa following Israel's creation.

Anti-Semitism and anti-Zionism are "two completely different concepts," Erakat asserted. Saito herself showed the linkage between the two during the webinar while reading a question from the viewing audience concerning the modern blood libel of Israel's "deadly exchange." Israeli police training exchanges with American police that supposedly promote their abuses are "inextricably linked to the occupation of black and indigenous bodies in the U.S.," she quoted without objection.

Avigail Aviles, a community organizer from New York City's Queens borough, amplified the panel's bellicosity by rejecting democratic norms. "I'm not a believer in electoral politics," for "you cannot create a better society on occupied land," she stated. For her, "legal evictions" are the "present day version of settler colonialism," as landlords exploit "land that's not theirs." Therefore, "people are being forcibly removed from the places that they call home in order to bring in wealthier, or better, residents."

Such utopian quests make the rule of law a necessary casualty: "Even representing someone in court, you are helping someone navigate a system of oppression," Pinheiro agreed. "Asylum is fundamentally racist," for "you are forcing black and indigenous people to relive the most traumatic parts in their life to prove that they deserve to be part of the settler-colonial state," she said. De Loggans added that "this idea of incrementalism and harm reduction is purposeful and strategic so that people don't go burn down everything right now."

Radical chic attracts wannabe revolutionaries too cowardly to inhabit the societal hellhole their ideology would birth. Comfortably bourgeois within their university sinecures, safe in a complex polity dependent on a constitutional order and respect for law they claim to loathe, Erakat, Saito, and their peers epitomize hypocrisy. Subject these ideologues to withering criticism, satirize their sanctimonious claims, and end any public support.
Growing schism on ecumenical committee over Presbyterian antisemitism
A Presbyterian reverend resigned from the ecumenical council over an anti-Israel trend he believes has crossed over into antisemitism.

In the wake of his resignation, more clergy have joined in, voicing their concerns, while at least one Jewish theologian believes that the anti-Israel history of the Presbyterian Church made antisemitism inevitable.

The conflict began last month on Dr. Martin Luther King Day when Rev. J. Herbert Nelson II, the Stated Clerk of the General Assembly for the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), equated the situation in the West Bank with slavery.

“The continued occupation in Palestine/Israel is 21st-century slavery and should be abolished immediately,” Nelson said in a statement.

The reverend called on the Jews in the US and the US government to act towards “ending the immoral enslavement”.

Rev. Nelson’s statement caused consternation among Jewish groups, especially as it came one week after the hostage crisis in a synagogue in Colleyville, Texas.


AlHurra Corrects Israelis in Golan Are Not ‘Settlers’
Following communication with CAMERA Arabic, U.S. public broadcaster AlHurra has corrected a Dec. 26, 2021 article which repeatedly referred to Israelis in the Golan Heights as “settlers.”

Originally entitled “Israeli government agrees on a plan to double the number of settlers in the Golan,” the accompanying article had referred to a “317 million dollar plan aimed at doubling the number of Jewish settlers in the Golan” and cited “7300 housing units for the settlers in the territory.” It also reported about the potential of “attracting up to 23 thousand additional Jewish settlers to the territory which Israel annexed in the 1967 war,” and continued, “About 25 thousand Jews are settled in the Golan Heights, alongside 23 thousand Druze who remained on their lands after Israeli takeover.” (Translations by CAMERA Arabic)

CAMERA brought to Alhurra’s attention the inconsistency between the article’s “settlers” terminology versus the official American position which recognizes the Golan Heights as Israeli. The article itself acknowledged the U.S. recognition of the Golan Heights as sovereign Israeli territory:
Former American president Trump recognized Israeli sovereignty over the Golan in 2019.

[After] Biden assumed his office last January, Secretary of State Anthony Blinken indicated that there are legal questions surrounding Trump’s move, however he confirmed that there is no thought of retracting the decision.

CAMERA also noted two additional inaccuracies in Alhurra’s reporting. Firstly, the date Israeli law was firstly applied to the Golan (“annexation”) is Dec. 14, 1981 and not June 1967 as the article suggests.


Ex-justice Gabriel Bach, former prosecutor in Eichmann’s trial, dies at 94
Gabriel Bach, a prosecutor in the 1961 trial of notorious Nazi Adolf Eichmann who went on to serve on Israel’s Supreme Court, has died. He was 94.

The Israel Judiciary Authority on Friday announced his passing. It did not provide a cause of death.

Bach served as a state’s attorney during Eichmann’s high-profile trial in Jerusalem and worked on evidence-gathering in the case under lead prosecutor Gideon Hausner.

Eichmann, one of Nazi Germany’s main organizers of the Holocaust, was captured by Israeli Mossad agents outside Buenos Aires, Argentina, in 1960. He was put on trial in Jerusalem in 1961 and found guilty of crimes against humanity, crimes against the Jewish people and war crimes. He was executed in 1962.

“If any person deserved death it was him,’” Bach said in a 2017 interview by Holocaust remembrance organization International March of the Living.

Bach was born in Germany in March 1927 and fled the country with his family in 1938, just one year before World War II broke out. He eventually immigrated to British Mandate for Palestine in 1940.

In 1982, Bach took the bench as a justice on Israel’s Supreme Court, where he served for 15 years.

Bach was to be laid to rest Sunday at Jerusalem’s Har Hamenuchot cemetery.


The lost story of how a Jewish family saved Thomas Jefferson’s famous home – twice
When white supremacists marched in Charlottesville in August 2017, they encircled the famous statue of Thomas Jefferson at the University of Virginia, shouting “Jews will not replace us.” Ironically, the statue of the American founding father was made by the patriotic Jewish sculptor Moses Ezekiel.

The antisemites were also unlikely to be aware that Jefferson’s nearby historic home Monticello — a National Historic Landmark and the only presidential house in the United States designated a UNESCO World Heritage site — survived ruin twice thanks to the efforts of a Jewish family named Levy.

Great admirers of Jefferson, the Levys were fiercely proud and loyal Americans. Grateful for the religious freedom granted by the United States Constitution, members of the family devoted themselves to military and political service. The Levys, particularly Uriah Phillips Levy and his nephew Jefferson Monroe Levy, owned, preserved and stewarded Monticello for 89 years — longer than Jefferson and his descendants.

Yet few are aware of this. The Levys’ connection to Monticello was lost to history for most of the 20th century. A new documentary film, “The Levys of Monticello,” illuminates the Levys’ critical connection to the treasured landmark, and also the nefarious reasons why the Jewish family’s important role was erased for so long.

“You can’t get more American than the Levys, yet they, as Jews, were dismissed as aliens and outsiders,” said director Steven Pressman.

“I wanted to make a film with a narrow focus on a personal experience of a single family, but also a broader focus on the Jewish American experience,” he said.
28 chickpeas launched to ISS for Israeli-led ‘space hummus’ experiment
Exactly 28 chickpeas were launched to the International Space Station Saturday as part of an Israeli-led experiment into the viability of growing the legume in space.

The chickpeas will be used to study germination in zero gravity. They were launched to the ISS from NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia, alongside eight tons of cargo aboard an unmanned Cygnus spacecraft.

They will be delivered to the American side of the ISS in a sealed miniature greenhouse, about the size of a quart container of milk.

The cargo shuttle will reach the ISS, located 300 miles (482 kilometers) above earth, after a day of travel.

The Israeli-led team will attempt to germinate and grow the chickpeas remotely using special software in an environment devoid of gravity and natural light.

The plants in the greenhouse will be grown for one month and then will be refrigerated until they are brought down to Earth in June.
The Lemonheads coming to Israel
The Lemonheads, one of the sparkling bands of the 1980-90s American alternative rock scene, will be making their Israel debut on May 21 at the Barby Club. The band, led by Evan Dando, will be performing their landmark 1992 fifth album It’s A Shame About Ray in its entirety.

The album was chock full of guitar pop gems revved up in a power trio format that was honed from their Boston-based hardcore roots of their earlier efforts. Its big hit, a power-pop version of Simon and Garfunkel’s “Mrs. Robinson,” along with Dando’ matinee idol looks, propelled the band into mainstream success.

Dando’s knack of writing memorable pop songs was as prodigious as his appetite for drugs, and despite continuing to make exceptional albums throughout the ‘90s, the band slowly lost its momentum. Dando has regularly resurrected the band with new members over the last two decades and has continued to release significant albums, including a 2003 solo effort, Baby I’m Bored and a 2006 self-titled Lemonheads album, with the help of Dinosaur Jr.’s J Macis, that stood among his best and pointed to Dando’s recovery.

The Tel Aviv show is part of a Lemonheads European tour marking the 30th anniversary of Ray. It was announced by the band in a poster issued on Facebook. Tickets sales have not yet been announced.






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