Friday, April 14, 2023

04/14 Links Pt1: Ruthie Blum: Is Hamas smelling Israeli weakness?; Orthodox Jewish group: ‘Lapid delegitimizing not just Israeli government, but Israel itself’

From Ian:

David Collier: Hate in the shadow of a terrorist attack
Whenever they occur terrorist attacks are met with global sympathy – except of course when they happen to Jews in Israel. But even for those of us who have become used to the blatant double standards, loaded headlines, and insincere commentary that regularly accompany these tragic events, the raw hate that we saw following the tragic events of last Friday still took us by surprise.

The Brutal terrorist attack
The Dee family had moved from London to Israel in 2014, and went to live in Efrat, a town situated in the Etzion bloc between Jerusalem and Hebron. The family held dual citizenship, and the father Leo, had once been the Rabbi at the Radlett synagogue in Hertfordshire.

On Friday, 7 April 2023, during the Pesach break, the family set off for a holiday to Lake Kinneret. They split into separate cars for the journey. As the car carrying the mother, Lucy and two daughters Maia (20) and Rina (15) reached Hamra Junction, it was attacked by Palestinian terrorists. Once the driver had been injured and the car had crashed, the terrorists walked up to the car and shot all three at point blank range. Maia and Rina were killed immediately. The mother, Lucy died three days later in hospital.

The natural response is heartbreak
This was a family torn apart in a brutal killing by Palestinian terrorists. Lucy and her two daughters had their lives stolen from them by hate-filled people who believe that killing Jews is a religious duty. The ideology of the terrorists is the same warped religious ideology that massacred innocent people in Manchester, London, Paris, Nice, Madrid, Brussels, New York, Berlin and 100s of other places around the world. They all had their excuses. The father, and the remaining children will somehow need to pick up the pieces and it is almost impossible for any normal person not to feel heartbreak for those that are left behind.

With the Jews it is different – even from the mainstream
Whenever terrorist attacks such as this occur there is usually a united outpouring of sympathy. Across the globe, landmarks and famous buildings are lit up with the colours of the victim country – as a means of standing in solidarity in their moment of heartbreak.

Charlie Hebdo solidarity
Except of course when it happens to Jews in Israel. At best we see a few meaningless words of condemnation from key political figures, but even these can be wrapped up in talk of ‘violence on both sides’ – thus equating Jews who are defending themselves against terrorism with the death cult of the terrorists.

Newspapers also rush to ‘blame the victim’, with most editors making sure they write the word ‘occupied‘, more often than they inserted humanising details about the innocent civilians that were murdered. Outlets like the Guardian stayed true to form and spent more time bashing Israel than criticising the terrorists.

Imagine for a minute an article about the Manchester Arena bombing focusing on what the UK and US did in Libya, Syria, Iraq, and Afghanistan rather than the young concert goers who were massacred at the venue. Salman Ramadan Abedi was an angry terrorist personally caught up in the devastation of Libya, but not a sane newspaper editor in the western world would have tried to rationalise his actions in the way that Palestinian terrorism is always excused. Had one done so, it is doubtful his newspaper would have survived.

The murder of Jews is treated differently. Somehow the media always finds a way to suggest we deserved it. And let us be honest here, the only reason this attack even got the limited attention that it did – is because the victims held a dual British citizenship.
Dr. Mordechai Kedar: ‘Death to Israel’: The Iranian plan to attack Israel
From the point of view of the West, the loss of Israel would not be so terrible, because in any case the Middle East turned its back on the West when Saudi Arabia and its Gulf partners—countries much more important than Israel—decided to turn their backs on the weak Western coalition and join the strong and growing Eastern Alliance that includes Russia, China, Iran, North Korea, Venezuela and more.

The Iranian government is very impressed by the continued desire of the Americans in particular and the West in general to appease them, lift the sanctions and accept it as a respected member of the family of nations, while demonstrably ignoring the Iranian race towards the bomb. This Western behavior instills in the hearts of the decision makers in Iran the feeling that no one in the West will do anything on the practical, military level to stop an air and ground attack on Israel such as the one described above.

The U.S. forces deployed in eastern Syria are meant to protect American interests, not Israeli ones, and Iran has already demonstrated several times that it has no problem attacking these American forces with missiles and drones. The American administration knows the negative attitude of the liberal majority of American Jewry towards Israel, particularly in recent months, and therefore is not afraid it will pay too great a public and political price if it allows Israel to deal with the Iranian invasion on its own. Biden will of course declare to the cameras that “Israel has the right to defend itself,” but he will try not to take actual steps.

A coordinated missile and UAV attack is not a theory; Iran has already done this in Saudi Arabia, on Sept. 14, 2019, and this attack caused enormous damage to Saudi Arabia’s oil export capacity, reducing it for many months. This was probably the reason for Saudi Arabia’s avoidance of joining the Abraham Accords and a factor that pushed Saudi Arabia into recently abandoning the understandings it had with Israel and joining the Iranian camp. The United States under Trump’s presidency, and Europe, did nothing against Iran following the attack in 2019, so it is certain that today they will do nothing when Biden is the president.

I don’t know how realistic this scenario of an air and ground attack on Israel is, but even if the chance of it happening in the foreseeable future is only one percent, the State of Israel must act as one united entity, and it is very important that the coalition work with the opposition in order to prepare the country and military for this scenario.

If the Israeli public wants to survive, it must prepare—mentally and physically—for war with the Iranian octopus that has managed to establish its grip on Gaza and the failed countries adjacent to Israel: Lebanon, Syria, Iraq and Yemen—all countries that have almost nothing to lose. Qatari money and the jihad media channel Al Jazeera are constantly pouring jet fuel on the fire of hatred for Israel and preparing public opinion in the Middle East and the wider world for the great, final campaign.

Qatari money has also bought Western politicians so that they would not see what Qatar does not want them to see, from the violation of human rights and foreign workers in Qatar to what Qatar’s ally—Iran—is planning to do to Israel.

It’s time to wake up. This dangerous scenario may be realistic.
Ruthie Blum: Is Hamas smelling Israeli weakness?
In a 2004 Israel TV interview on their newly published book about the Second Intifada, co-authors Avi Issacharoff and Amos Harel recounted the purpose of the joint endeavor and what their research uncovered. Expressing amazement at their findings, show host Meni Pe’er (who died a decade later) pointed in particular to their research on suicide bombings.

“Yes,” said Issacharoff. “In The Seventh War: How We Won and Why We Lost the War with the Palestinians, we tried to examine the thinking of Hamas, not merely that of the Palestinian mainstream.”

To do this, the two Israeli correspondents and commentators on Arab and Middle East affairs spoke to senior Hamas officials. Among these was Sheikh Hassan Yousef.

Yousef, a co-founder and spiritual leader of the terrorist organization, spent several stints in Israeli prisons. Today, he is in charge of the group’s West Bank (Judea and Samaria) operations.

According to Issacharoff, Yousef explained that one of Hamas’s goals in its overall pursuit of the Jewish state’s ultimate destruction had been to foment and enhance internecine Israeli strife. Evidence of a schism on which the organization could build, Yousef told the authors, lay in calls on the part of the Israeli Left for a complete withdrawal from Judea, Samaria and the Gaza Strip, and for IDF soldiers and reservists to refuse to serve in those territories.

It was the latter, above all, he said, that buoyed Hamas to keep up its suicide attacks on Israelis. A revelation that has eluded all trying to boycott IDF service to protest judicial reforms

THIS REVELATION, which is just as pertinent now as it was then, must have eluded all those defending current ultimatums by “conscientious objectors” to boycott military duty if the government reforms the judicial system. Furthermore, the argument that such threats aren’t emanating solely from the Left, but are voiced from a cross-section of concerned patriots, is as irrelevant as the claims that Israel is on the verge of becoming a theocratic dictatorship are false.

Ditto for the assertion that the judicial reform process is responsible for Israel’s appearing weak in the eyes of its enemies. In fact, it’s the well-oiled protest movement – commandeered by formerly prominent figures promoting the demonization of the powers-that-be in Jerusalem – that’s been signaling instability.

And Hamas, like its patrons in Iran, is paying close attention to what it perceives, or at least hopes, is Israel’s imminent implosion. The timing of its rocket barrages last weekend from launchers in Gaza and Lebanon, after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu initially fired Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, wasn’t accidental. The terror masters observed with glee as the Israeli “resistance” reacted to this move by shutting down the economy.

They were undoubtedly even more pleased to see Netanyahu resolve the problem by pausing judicial-reform legislation to enable dialogue and compromise with the opposition. Not that Hamas gives a hoot about the balance of power among the three branches of government in a democracy.

Nor does it distinguish between one Jewish defense minister, or political party, and another. Yet it definitely grasps the benefits of a deeply divided “Zionist entity,” which is why the demonstrations spurred it to test Israeli resolve and IDF strength in the face of salvos from different directions.

Issacharoff – who created the hit Netflix series, Fauda, along with its star, Lior Raz – might agree with this assessment if his antipathy for Netanyahu’s ruling coalition weren’t so great. The same applies to Harel, with whom he also wrote the 2008 book, 34 Days: Israel, Hezbollah, and the War in Lebanon.




Foreign secretary writes to Rabbi Dee to condemn 'brutal' murders
The foreign secretary has written to Rabbi Leo Dee to condemn terrorism faced by Israel and express condolences over the “brutal” murder of his wife and daughters.

The former Radlett United Synagogue rabbi’s children Rina, 15, and Maia, 20, were killed when Palestinian gunmen drove their car off the road and shot it with 20 bullets on April 7.

Dee’s wife, Rabbetzin Lucy Dee, 48, was seriously wounded in the attack and died three days later in hospital. Organs donated following her death saved the lives of five people.

In a letter sent Thursday April 13, James Cleverly said: "There can be no justification for such senseless and abhorrent violence, and I unequivocally condemn this act of terrorism.

“The UK remains steadfast in our commitment to work with the Israeli authorities, and all parties in the region, to bring an end to the terrorism that Israel faces, and to the cycle of violence which, as we have seen all too clearly, is so destructive.”

If there is anything that the British government can do to help you or your family, he added, you should let us know.

Britain’s foreign office was previously criticised for the weak phrasing of an initial statement on the attack.

It read: “We are saddened to hear about the deaths of two British-Israeli citizens and the serious injuries sustained by a third individual”, and called for “‘all parties… to de-escalate tensions”.

In response, Israel’s former ambassador to America, Michael Oren, wrote: “Shame on Britain. No mention of Palestinians or terror, no outrage. The sisters merely ‘died’ and a third person was somehow injured.”


Orthodox Jewish group: ‘Lapid delegitimizing not just Israeli government, but Israel itself’
Am Echad, a U.S. group associated with the ultra-Orthodox Agudath Israel of America, sent an open letter to Israeli opposition leader and Yesh Atid Party chairman Yair Lapid on April 11 expressing their “grave concern” over comments he made at a recent Jewish Federations meeting in New York.

Shlomo Werdiger and Irving Lebovics, co-chairmen of Am Echad, wrote that they saw the “comments as sowing discord and delegitimizing not just the current Israeli government, but Israel itself in the eyes of the world, both Jewish and not.”

“Rhetoric characterizing the government as ‘extremist’ and ‘undemocratic’ jeopardizes the relationship between Israel and world Jews,” they said. “More importantly, when such statements move into mainstream media, they delegitimize Israel itself, and by extension pose real danger to the safety of Diaspora communities.”

“In your role as the Head of the Opposition, you are both entitled and required to critique the government. However, that does not extend to undermining the government outside the borders of Israel, calling on Diaspora Jews to counter the government, and driving a wedge between Israel and Jews around the world,” they added.

“When you go back to Israel, we in the Diaspora will face the potential consequences of even more antisemitism, powered by your words. Israel is precious to every single one of us. We are proud of its vibrant democracy and amazing growth. We ask you that going forward you refrain from damaging, inflammatory rhetoric against Israel and its government during meetings in the Diaspora,” they concluded.
The Israel Guys: Netanyahu CLOSES The Temple Mount to JEWS & Minister Ben-Gvir Is FURIOUS
Help feed the needy in Israel by donating here: https://donate.meirpanim.org/passover...

Thousands of people gathered together for the funeral of Lucy Dee, the mother of the British sisters who were brutally murdered last week.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu decided to close the Temple Mount for the remainder of Ramadan because of security concerns.

And a video of just one example of why many Palestinian-Arabs hate the Jewish people so much.




Seth Frantzman: Iran claims it will host pro-Palestinian naval stunt
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps announced a naval drill on Thursday in which its naval units will hold a “parade” in support of the Palestinians. According to various Iranian state media, including Fars, IRNA and others, this is the “biggest parade of the authority of the naval mobilization of the IRGC Navy base people in support of the Palestinian people will be held at 15:30 this evening (Thursday, April 24) on the shores of the Persian Gulf, the Oman Sea, and the Caspian Sea.”

According to the Iranian claims, the stunt will involve some 2,500 boats and floating things from a whole plethora of IRGC-linked units, including the Basij. Tasnim News said that this “sea parade” will be in support of the Palestinian people and the cause of the “liberation” of Jerusalem.

The various events will supposedly take place “in the countries of the axis of resistance and on the coasts of Syria, Lebanon, Palestine, Yemen and Iraq.” Iran apparently means it will get Hamas to participate from Gaza by saying it is doing this in “Palestine.”

Iran says that the IRGC Navy will send its vessels, which usually include hundreds of fast boats of varying type and quality. Some of these have been recently outfitted with drones and other weapons. Iran’s IRGC navy generally surpasses the actual Iranian navy in terms of its support from the regime, its role in regime activities, and often operates in the Persian Gulf and has harassed US and other vessels in the past.

Iranian state media claimed that according to the IRGC Navy’s Public Relations, Rear Admiral Alireza Tangsiri “said that the maritime parade will be held on April 13 in the northern and southern coastal regions of the country as well as in several ports around the world.”

The rear admiral said that this was “to defend the [oppressed] people of Palestine, support their intifada (uprising), and condemn the heinous and cruel crimes of the Zionist regime; the largest popular parade by the vessels of the IRGC Navy’s Basij is planned for 15:30 on Thursday,” Tangsiri said.


FDD: All Eyes on the Iranian Regime as ‘Quds Day’ Dawns in the Middle East
Israel has deployed thousands of officers in Jerusalem and in the vicinity of the Temple Mount and the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound ahead of this Friday’s “Quds Day,” a yearly event manufactured by the Islamic Republic of Iran to protest Israel’s sovereignty in Jerusalem and to whip up coordinated anti-Israel incitement against Israel across the Muslim world. Israelis are concerned that agitators will respond to calls by Hamas and its patron in Tehran to carry out violence in Jerusalem, potentially spilling over across the rest of Israel and the region.

Yesterday, Palestinian Islamic Jihad leader Ziyad al-Nakhleh traveled to Baghdad at the “invitation of the Iraqi government” to meet with high-level Iraqi officials and deliver a speech at a Quds Day march. According to reports, the parties discussed support for the Palestinian cause. While in Iraq, Nakhleh also met with Iran’s ambassador to Iraq, Mohammad Kazem al-Sadegh, to discuss the “Palestine issue.”

In Iran, hundreds of marches and events have been planned across the country to commemorate Quds Day. Keynote speakers include Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, who proclaimed that the “unity of the Islamic ummah” (community) will lead to the destruction of the Zionist regime. Another speaker, Hossein Salami, commander-in-chief of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), declared that the Quds Force — the IRGC’s expeditionary arm, responsible for the deaths of hundreds of American soldiers — was established “with the aim of pressuring the Zionist regime” and achieving its ultimate “elimination.”

The regime in Iran is even pressuring its small Jewish community to forgo Passover celebrations to join in events scheduled to take place in the country.

Tehran is also exporting virulent anti-Israel sentiment to Middle East territories where Iran enjoys significant leverage. This includes Syria, where a number of Iran-allied Palestinian factions have mounted efforts to attack Israel in recent years. There is also Quds Day activity in the Gaza Strip, which is controlled by the Iran-backed terrorist group Hamas. In Lebanon, Hassan Nasrallah, the secretary general of the Iran-backed terrorist group Hezbollah, has called for wide participation in Quds Day activities across Lebanon. He further declared that Palestinian men, women, and children form the front line to defend Jerusalem’s holy sites.
Hacker group brings down Israeli postal, banking and telecoms websites
A hacker group attacked the websites of Israel’s national mail service and major banks Friday, briefly bringing them down in an assault seemingly timed to coincide with a day of Iranian-promoted anti-Israel events.

The attack was quickly squelched, authorities said, with apparently no significant harm or data leaks, though the websites of two telecoms and more banks later went down, indicating that the cyber assault was not over.

The attack was claimed by a group of hackers that goes by “Anonymous Sudan,” according to Hebrew media reports, citing a telegram message posted by the shadowy collective.

The National Cyber Directorate said the site for Israel’s national mail service was back up and running after a few minutes. Bank Mizrachi’s page was down for half an hour, it said.

The attacks only caused “occasional interruptions,” it said.

The directorate noted that the hackers did not gain access to internal documents or files, but merely the customer-facing interface.

“The attempts are limited to marketing websites and are unrelated to the bank’s internal systems,” it said.

A short time later the websites for the Hot cable service provider and 012 mobile carrier went down, with the group claiming responsibility for those as well.

The attacks coincided with the marking of Quds Day, an Iran-promoted event featuring virulently anti-Israel marches and rallies in Tehran and elsewhere.
Iran mocks Israel's 'waning existence' in Quds Day Twitter post
Iran's Foreign Ministry on Friday tweeted a video and message in honor of Quds Day, criticizing Israel as having a "waning existence."

"The waning existence of Israel is no longer able to deceive the world," the ministry tweeted. "No conspiracy will save the Zionist regime. Quds belongs to Palestinians."

The term Quds means Jerusalem and Quds Day is a celebration common in Iran and other Shi'ite Muslim populations, such as in Lebanon, Syria and elsewhere.

The founder of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Ayatollah Khomeini, created Quds Day in 1979 as a worldwide demonstration to protest the existence of the state of Israel.

The video, set to dramatic music, is a montage of still images ranging from Israeli and US flag burnings to pro-Palestinian protests.


Seth Frantzman: Six Iranian theories on Israel's strengths and weaknesses
In one of the most interesting interviews in Iranian pro-regime media this week, the regime appeared to explain its overall view on the Middle East today, particularly in regard to Israel.

The interview was held with former Iranian diplomat Hadi Afghahi, who is frequently quoted in Iranian regime media and his views represent not only the regime’s views but also a kind of trial balloon for how the regime views the region. For instance, he recently praised the possibility of Turkey-Syria reconciliation and noted that Syria and Saudi Arabia would soon reconcile. As an analyst, he presents the Iranian regional view.

In a long interview with Tasnim News, which is considered to represent views close to the IRGC, the analyst was quoted at length about the “fate” of Israel and also asked to provide an assessment of recent Palestinian threats to Israel. He revealed many interesting details about Iran’s emerging consensus on what is going on in Israel and in Iran’s attempts to threaten Israel.

Let’s examine some key points.

The “third front” against Israel
Iran has been openly bragging about threatening Israel from all sides in recent clashes in early April. It also believes Israel is weakening internally. The interview reveals that Iran believes it is creating a “third” front against Israel. Afghahi said that “Zionist positions were targeted by rockets from southern Lebanon, and shortly before Syria, Zionist positions were targeted in the Golan Heights. These attacks were a surprise for the Zionist regime.”

He argues that Iran should back this front against Israel and hints that while Iran has backed various proxy and local groups, which it calls the “resistance axis,” “we must also gradually enter the field of fighting.” The term “we” could mean the IRGC.

It also appears to mean more threats will emerge. “Now such attacks may be carried out from Yemen, Iraq, Syria and Lebanon.”

Iran is now reconciling with Saudi Arabia, meaning it can shift resources from Yemen to Iraq and also threaten Israel elsewhere. This interview may be one of the first acknowledgments of the strategy.




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