Friday, May 05, 2023

05/05 Links Pt1: US envoy nominee: I’ll do everything to extradite Ahlam Tamimi; Erdan: ‘Tlaib’s ignorance, hate toward Jews and Israel know no bounds’

From Ian:

US envoy nominee: I’ll do everything to extradite Ahlam Tamimi
The nominee for the post of America’s Ambassador to Jordan Yael Lempert promised that if confirmed she would push to ensure the extradition of terrorist Ahlam Tamimi to the United States for her role in the 2001 Jerusalem bombing that killed 15, including seven children.

“I will do everything in my power to ensure that Ahlam Tamimi faces justice in the US for her horrific crimes,” Lempert said during a Senate confirmation hearing in Washington on Thursday.

Tamimi, 43, was originally from the West Bank town of Nabi Saleh and is on the Foreign Bureau of Investigation’s list of most wanted terrorists. She moved to Jordan after she was freed from an Israeli jail in the 2011 prisoner swap for the release of captive Gilad Schalit.

The US has pushed for her extradition given that two of the victims of the attack which took place at the Sbarro pizza restaurant were American citizens; Malka Roth, 15, and Shoshana Yehudit Greenbaum, 31.

Lempert was quizzed on the issue of Tamimi by US Republican Senator Ted Cruz of Texas, who said he was determined “to get this terrorist who murdered Americans to face justice.” He explained that he had “personally raised this issue face to face, multiple times with the King of Jordan. We need to get this resolved.”

Cruz pressed Lempert, who is now the Deputy Assistant Secretary for the Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs, on whether she would support withholding military and economic assistance to Jordan over Tamimi’s extradition. He noted outgoing Ambassador to Jordan Henry Wooster had put in writing his support for that option as one possible pressure lever.

“Our relationship with Jordan is multifaceted and extremely important,” Lempert said, adding that there are some issues that the two countries would not agree on.

“I am willing to explore a variety of ways to continue this discussion with the Jordanians,” Lempert said.




Mark Regev: Stalin and the creation of Israel: The Soviet tyrant’s inadvertent Zionism
Despite the decades of staunch Soviet opposition to Zionism that saw Zionist activists sent to the Gulag, including Israel’s future prime minister Menachem Begin, in the November 1947 UN partition vote Moscow backed Jewish statehood.

Stalin’s UN delegate Andrei Gromyko stated: “The fact that no Western European state has been able to ensure the defense of the elementary rights of the Jewish people and to safeguard it against the violence of the fascist executioners explains the aspirations of the Jews to establish their own state.”

As expected, Belarus, Czechoslovakia, Poland, and Ukraine followed Moscow in supporting Jewish independence, their votes essential in achieving the required two-thirds majority.

Over the following months, while Washington wavered and abandoned partition for trusteeship, Moscow remained resolute in advocating a Jewish state. And in May 1948, if the US became the first country to grant Israel de facto recognition, it was the Soviet Union that led the international community in establishing full diplomatic relations.

But Stalin’s assistance was not just diplomatic. When seven Arab countries invaded to destroy the newborn Jewish state, their military forces were armed with Western weapons, and in some cases even trained and commanded by British officers.

Washington chose to remain aloof from the fighting, imposing an arms embargo on all the parties to the conflict – a decision that reinforced the Arabs’ preexisting quantitative advantage (though some American equipment was purchased surreptitiously).

Outmanned and outgunned, the Jews desperately needed weapons for their defense. Communist Czechoslovakia stepped in and supplied Israel with dozens of military aircraft, 50,000 rifles, 6,000 machine guns and 90 million bullets – their provision authorized by the Kremlin.

Moscow’s impetus was not altruism – it stemmed from the Soviet desire to roll back the British empire and weaken Western influence in the Middle East. But Stalin’s motivation notwithstanding, the armaments he approved were indispensable.

The Kremlin would soon dramatically reverse course. By the 1950s Moscow became the champion of Arab nationalism, embracing an anti-Israel and anti-Jewish agenda – and would continue thus over consecutive decades.

But at a historic inflection point, when it was life or death for the nascent Jewish state, Stalin was Israel’s indispensable patron.
On Dutch Holocaust day, Zelensky asks Netherlands to also mourn dead Ukrainians
On a rare state visit to the Netherlands on Thursday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky took a bold diplomatic license: He asked that Dutchmen think of his countrymen as well as their own during the kingdom’s national memorial day for the victims of the Holocaust and World War II.

This plea by Zelensky during his visit, which coincided with the May 4 memorial day, is in line with his broader messaging that juxtaposes Ukraine with the Allied Forces of World War II, and draws parallels between the yearlong Russia-Ukraine war and issues that foreign audiences may find more relatable.

In the Netherlands, this message certainly resonated with audiences open to it. But amid growing fatigue in the West of the protracted trench war, it also backfired with a wide array of others, ranging from nationalist politicians to left-leaning Jewish community leaders, who objected to what critics viewed as an attempt to piggyback a national commemoration.

Part of what irked Zelensky’s critics was how directly he bundled the Dutch memorial day together with the Ukraine conflict. Another part was that he appeared to generalize the Dutch day of mourning, which was instituted in 1945 and is widely seen as pertaining mainly to World War II victims and members of the Dutch armed forces and envoys who fell thereafter in the line of duty.

“When today, as always on the fourth of May, at eight o’clock in the evening, you will honor the memory of all those whose lives were taken away by wars – World War II and others – please also remember Ukrainians – men and women, adults and children, who would have been alive now but for this aggression. The war we didn’t want, the one we have to make the last. We’ll do it,” Zelensky said in a speech at the Dutch parliament.

Ronny Naftaniel, a former chair of the Central Jewish Board of the Netherlands, reacted to the visit on Twitter, writing that whereas Zelensky “is welcome in the Netherlands also on May 4” and is “fighting for the freedom of his country, the war in Ukraine should not be confused with the memorial day. Leave the wreath laying and the 2 minutes of silence out of it.”
Meeting in Brussels opens new page in EU-Israel relations amid constitutional crisis
The meeting in Brussels on Tuesday between EU’s High Representative Josep Borrell and Israel’s Foreign Minister Eli Cohen did not result in any joint statement but might have eased their strained relations and paved the way for next EU-Israel Association Council meeting.

The meeting was their first in-person encounter and the first high-level meeting between the two sides since a new government with far-right parties came to power in Israel with plans for a judicial reform which would undermine the independence of Israel’s supreme court and the system of checks and balances.

As previously reported, Borrell has avoided to enter the internal and still on-going debate in Israel on the judicial reform. He managed to find some common ground with critical MEPs at a plenary debate in the European Parliament on the proposed judicial reform and its implications for EU-Israel relations and the Middle East peace process.

In his statements on behalf of the EU he usually denounces unilateral measures and the violence by both sides in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The violence derails the already dormant peace process and might escalate to full war as recent incidents have shown. This was not to the liking of the new Israeli government and there were even rumors in media that Borrell was not welcome for an official visit in Israel.

According to the statement which he issued after the meeting the two sides discussed the bilateral relations between the EU and Israel as well as regional issues. Among others Borrell recalled that cooperation between the EU and Israel is very strong and that the EU is keen on deepening this relationship further, hoping for another meeting of the EU- Israel Association Council this year.

The previous meeting of the EU-Israel Association Council took place in Brussels last October before the Israeli elections, after a suspension of ten years during which no political dialogue between the two parties was possible. At that meeting, the EU presented a detailed common position paper which is unlikely to be accepted by the current Israeli government.
Bosnian PM tells Israel Hayom she 'would like to see embassy in Jerusalem'
Borjana Krišto had already made history in her country, Bosnia and Herzegovina, when she became the first woman to be elected as the federation's president in 2007, as well as last January, when she became the first woman to be elected as the prime minister of the nationwide government responsible for both parts of the country – Bosnia and Herzegovina on the one hand, and the Serbian entity – Republika Srpska, on the other. Towards the end of the year, the 61-year-old Croatian with a law degree is likely to make history again when she becomes the first prime minister of the State of Bosnia and Herzegovina to visit Israel. Contact between the two countries is already being made regarding the visit's arrangement, and the visit is likely to occur in November. For Israel, Krišto's visit is highly significant, as it will show the strengthening of its ties with yet another country with a Muslim majority that is susceptible to influence by pro-Palestinian Islamic entities.

Krišto is part of the Croatian minority that resides mainly in south Bosnia and Herzegovina, adjacent to Croatia's border. After Bosnia and Herzegovina's separation from Yugoslavia at the beginning of the 1990s, the three main population groups in the country – the Bosnian Muslims, the Orthodox Serbians, and the Catholic Croatians – waged a bloody civil war in which 100,000 people were killed and approximately two million people were displaced from their homes. Bosnia and Herzegovina simultaneously experienced horrific war crimes that the warring sides committed on its soil. The war ended in 1995 with the signing of the United States-sponsored Dayton Agreement. This agreement turned Bosnia and Herzegovina into a multi-ethnic federation with a complex governmental structure led by a foreign high commissioner who represents the international community and has the authority to rule on the country's internal affairs. The current high commissioner, Christian Schmidt, did so just recently when he amended the country's constitution to solve a political deadlock that prevented the establishment of the new government for years. Schmidt's intervention allowed the government to push the majority party, the nationalist-Islamic "Party of Democratic Action" – in power for most of the years that modern Bosnia and Herzegovina's existed – away. This party, which has been accused of being close ideologically to the Muslim Brotherhood and maintained relations with Erdogan's government in Türkiye and with Iran, acted to halt the development of relations between Bosnia and Herzegovina and Israel. Now, these actions will likely no longer stand in the way of the two countries strengthening their ties.

Krišto was one of four prime ministers who participated in the opening of the big Israeli pavilion in the International Economic Fair Mostar 2023 – the biggest trade fair in the Balkan region. Standing beside her were the prime ministers of Serbia and Croatia and the prime minister of the Bosnian-Croatian part of Bosnia and Herzegovina. "The official relations between Bosnia and Herzegovina and Israel are expanding and developing in a positive direction," said Krišto in an interview with Israel Hayom, "proof of this is our official visits to Israel and Israeli officials' visits here. As a result of improving our relations, Israel is becoming Bosnia and Herzegovina's partner. Israel's Chamber of Commerce in Bosnia and Herzegovina has allowed Israel to be invited to the Mostar Fair as a guest nation. An Israeli entrepreneur (Amir Gross Kabiri – E.B.) rehabilitated the company "Aluminij Industries" (the biggest aluminum company in Bosnia and Herzegovina – E.B.) and turned it into a thriving export company that has 400 employees. Aside from economic cooperation, there is also cooperation in tourism and culture. I am more than convinced that Israel's presence at the Mostar Fair will bring us even closer and will expand the cooperation between us and Israel. After the Israeli pavilion was opened, many meetings were held between companies from both countries in which many topics were discussed. In these meetings, exceptional ideas for shared future development of various projects were exchanged. For us, Israel serves as an example of a small country that can find ways to develop and become one of the world's most successful countries. We have much to learn from Israel."
The UN’s Truly ‘Special’ Special Rapporteur
There are few positions at the United Nations that illustrate the extreme anti-Israel bias of that body better than the “Special Rapporteur on the occupied Palestinian territories” — a position created by the United Nations Commission on Human Rights in 1993, supposedly to seek justice and respect for human rights. In reality, it has been a position filled by a series of hate-filled individuals whose single-minded purpose is to demonize the Jewish State — as the Commission and its successor organization, the UN Human Rights Council, intended all along.

This record has been underscored by the current incumbent, Italian academic Francesca Albanese.

In December 2022, her social media history was exposed, including a multitude of disturbing, and even antisemitic posts; yet that was just the tip of an iceberg of ugliness.

In 2014, she posted that America is “subjugated by the Jewish lobby,” while Europe is subjugated “by the sense of guilt about the Holocaust.” Another post stated “[t]he Israeli lobby is clearly inside [the BBC’s] veins…”

This revelation led to a series of condemnations by the US government and Congress, European Parliament members, and many others.

Initially, after these posts were revealed, Albanese acknowledged that the comments were a “mistake”. However, she quickly backtracked, saying that the criticism was “yet another malicious attack” on her mandate — because her comments accusing the Jewish lobby of subjugating America were “wrongly mischaracterized as antisemitic.”

She had previously compared Israel to Nazi Germany, which was further evidenced when she endorsed a post by her husband, Massimiliano Calì, equating Palestinian terrorists with Jews resisting the Nazis in the Warsaw Ghetto. She also failed to disclose that her husband was previously employed by the Palestinian Authority — claiming in her application for the Special Rapporteur role that she had no personal conflicts of interest.


UN antisemitism summit comes amid criticism of bigotry from within



Bnei Menashe community member killed, 2 synagogues torched in India violence
Members of a small group tracing their heritage to the ancient Israelites and seeking to move to Israel found themselves caught up in violent ethnic clashes in northeastern India this week, when at least one member of the community was killed, 10 more went missing, and over 200 homes were torched in the state of Manipur.

A father of four from the 5,000-person-strong Bnei Menashe community is known to be dead and 10 others are unaccounted for, a Jewish organization with local volunteers told The Times of Israel on Thursday. Shavei Israel, headed by Michael Freund, is an Israel-based organization that encourages people of Jewish descent to strengthen their connection with Israel and immigrate.

In addition, two synagogues were burned down, and one Torah scroll was torched.

Freund said that at least 210 Bnei Menashe homes were also burnt to the ground. His organization, which is active in northeast India as part of its mission to return “lost” Jews to the fold, is raising money to provide emergency assistance to the community.

The Bnei Menashe are believed to be descended from the biblical tribe of Menashe, one of the Ten Lost Tribes exiled from the Land of Israel more than 2,700 years ago.

In 2005, then-Sephardic chief rabbi Shlomo Amar endorsed the Bnei Menashe’s claim to Jewish ancestry but required them to convert to Judaism. Some 5,000 Bnei Menashe have immigrated to Israel in recent years, with another 5,000 or so remaining in India.


Erdan: ‘Tlaib’s ignorance, hate toward Jews and Israel know no bounds’
Israeli Ambassador to the United Nations Gilad Erdan responded to a tweet on May 3 from Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.), who wrote that “Speaker [Kevin] McCarthy wants to rewrite history but the apartheid state of Israel was born out of violence and the ethnic cleansing of Palestinians.”

“Tlaib’s ignorance and hate toward Jews and Israel know no bounds. The facts are clear: the Arabs rejected the U.N.’s resolution to establish a Jewish state and started a war to annihilate it,” wrote Erdan. “Palestinian leadership is leading its people to catastrophe by inciting hate/terror and rejecting peace.”

The Israeli diplomat went further in an interview with Fox News.

“Tlaib is rewriting history, and her antisemitic lies ignore the fact that the only ethnic cleansing took place against the 850,000 Jews, who were expelled from Arab countries following Israel’s establishment,” he said.

One of nine House members to vote against funding Israel’s Iron Dome air-defense system, Tlaib has often attacked Israel on social media, including a recent post that slandered Israeli police.
New research: $2 million in federal grants went to domestic Islamist groups
Of 60 federal grants, worth $15 million, given to Muslim organizations in 2022, $2 million went to groups “controlled by Islamists or involved in Islamist networks.” That’s according to a May 3 article by Sam Westrop in Focus on Western Islam.

“While these figures have concerned counter-extremism analysts and reformist Muslims, historical data compiled by FWI reveals that this is in fact the lowest level of funding provided to Islamist groups since 2014, and an abrupt contrast to the record high of over $16 million given to Islamist groups under President [Donald] Trump in 2018,” he wrote.

The research was created by cross-referencing 10,000 names against federal data from USASpending.gov. The groups in question included the Al-Furqaan Foundation ($247,000), the Rahmat-e-Alam Foundation ($148,000), Islamic Circle of North America (ICNA) Relief ($150,000), the Islamic Organization of North America ($450,000) and the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) Oklahoma branch ($250,000).

“The bad news: [U.S. President Joe] Biden sent $2 million of taxpayer money to U.S. Islamist groups in 2022. The good news: That’s way down from the $16 million Trump sent them in 2018,” tweeted Daniel Pipes, president of the Middle East Forum. “Yes, Trump sent more money to them than any other U.S. president. Puzzling but true.”
NYC Council Vote on ‘End Jew Hatred Day’ Measure Reflects Uneasy Political Roadmap for Jewish Americans
New York City Councilman Charles Barron (D). Photo: M. Stan Reaves/Alamy via REUTERS

Last week’s New York City (NYC) Council vote on a resolution establishing April 29 as “End Jew Hatred Day” confirms that intersectional political investments targeting Israel have successfully integrated antisemitism into some corners of the Democratic Party.

On April 28, six NYC Democrat council members refused to support the “End Jewish Hatred Day” measure, sponsored by GOP lawmaker Inna Vernikov, which ended up passing with four abstentions in a 41 to two vote.

Those who voted “no” were Brooklyn council members Shahana Hanif (D), the first Muslim woman elected to the council, and Sandra Nurse (D), who represents the Bushwick section of the borough. Those who abstained include Charles Barron (D), Alexa Aviles (D), Rita Joseph (D), and Jennifer Gutierrez (D). Hanif, whose district contains portions of Borough Park and Park Slope, co-chairs the Progressive Caucus. The lawmakers rejecting last week’s effort against antisemitism are all members of the NYC Progressive Caucus.

In March, the Anti-Defamation League’s (ADL) 2022 Audit of Antisemitic Incidents found New York experiencing the highest levels of antisemitic events in the country. That six out of 43 Democrats who voted on the measure objected to fighting antisemitism — purportedly about issues related to Israel or out of partisan objections — highlights how the state’s party continues to lurch left as Jewish New Yorkers confront unprecedented danger.

Open expressions of antisemitism have, for years, been brewing within NYC’s Democratic Party. Some of its policies prompted councilman Ari Kagan to switch his political affiliation to the Republican Party last year, upping the number of GOP members on the 51-member body to six elected officials. This past summer, Emily Mayer, founder of the anti-Israel Jewish group IfNotNow, was chosen to head the NYC Council Progressive Caucus. Mayer was one of several activists arrested in 2016 for holding a “liberation seder” in the building housing the NYC ADL office. The young activist has invoked the antisemitic trope involving Jewish money. Mayer’s husband, Walid Shaheed, is a spokesman for the far-left political action group Justice Democrats.


Exclusive: Biblical site under threat amid ongoing Palestinian construction
Preserving the Eternal, an advocacy group that seeks to prevent the destruction of national heritage sites by Palestinians has sounded the alarm over what appears to be a deliberate effort to destroy a key landmark in Samaria.

El-Unuk , one of the six "Gilgal" sites that were identified by the archaeologist Adam Zertal as dating to the People of Israel's entry into the land following Joshua's conquest, is in Area B, under Palestinian civilian control and Israeli security governance. It is in the vicinity of Nahal Tirzah, one of the streams that flows from Eastern Samaria into the Jordan Valley and the Jordan River, and from there to the Dead Sea.

The site is now under immediate threat of destruction, because of construction work being carried out by the PA, which has already paved a road at the complex, Preserving the Eternal told Israel Hayom. A few weeks ago, serious damage was uncovered because of infrastructure and road construction, which seems to have been carried out as preparation for a residential neighborhood or a commercial area. An inspector from the organization has identified a large residential building at the site. Dr. Shai Bar, a lecturer at Haifa University and director of an archaeological survey at the site, warns: "This is doing terrible damage at an important Early Iron Age site, which was revealed many years ago in a survey of Manasseh Hill."

According to Bar, "Building on an ancient site without taking the necessary steps to preserve it is unbelievable incompetence, demonstrating a lack of governance by the authorities, who are supposed to ensure that this doesn't happen in areas under its control. The authorities need to immediately halt the construction work and to attempt to save the findings from the damaged site."

The indiscriminate destruction of Jewish heritage sites in Judea and Samaria is a common and especially disturbing trend. In the best-case scenario, the PA takes control of different sites and co-opts them Palestinian. In the worst-case scenario – which often happens – they carry out massive and irreparable destruction.
WATCH: Dramatic footage of Nablus raid targeting Dee family killers
The Israel Police published Thursday afternoon footage of the daring military mission in Nablus earlier in the day in which the two Hamas terrorists responsible for the murder of Lucy Dee and her daughters Maia and Rina were killed.

During the raid, which was conducted by the Yamam counterterrorism unit, troops fired a rocket at the building where the terrorists were hiding in order to flush them out into the open.

The footage showed officers launching grenades at the building.

Hassan Katnani and Ma'ad Masr were both killed, as was Ibrahim Hura, identified by the IDF as a collaborator with the terrorists.

Earlier in the day, footage circulating on Palestinian social media showed what in hindsight was revealed to be Israeli fighters walking through Nablus in disguise, some as Arab men and some as women wearing hijabs.

Leo Dee, Lucy's husband and the father of Maia and Rina, said his three other children "were comforted to hear that the Israeli security forces have eliminated" the terrorists responsible for the murder of their loved ones.


Israel returns bodies of three Palestinian terrorists, Ben-Gvir attacks 'serious mistake'
Israel handed over to the Palestinian Authority on Friday three bodies of terrorists of Lions' Den terror organization who were killed in a shooting at Jit Junction in March.

National Security Minister MK Itamar Ben-Gvir stated that "Defense Minister [Yoav] Gallant's decision to return the bodies of the Lions' Den terrorist members, which carried out a large part of the attacks in the West Bank, is a serious mistake that will cost us dearly.

"This government is a right-wing government and the public did not give us a mandate to return the bodies of terrorists or to avoid bombing Gaza. It is still not too late to lead a powerful and offensive security policy," Ben-Gvir continued. "Otzma Yehudit will continue to be absent from the votes until the Israeli government changes direction and begins to uphold the policy for which it was elected."

The terrorists were Jihad al-Shami (24), Udai al-Shami (22) and Muhammad al-Davik (18), according to Ynet.

Yisrael Beytenu MK Oded Forer noted his disappointment with the news on Twitter, stating that the Ben-Gvir and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu "avoid targeted threats" and that "this evil government is succumbing to terrorism."
The Israel Guys: HOW Israel Uses FACIAL RECOGNITION To Catch Terrorists
The Media likes to gang up with Human Rights organizations to accuse Israel of crimes they did not commit. One of their recent antics has been to accuse Israel of Apartheid for using Facial Recognition for security. Is this claim of Apartheid true?


Stabbing in Huwara, West Bank – Knife Attack Carried Out by a Female Terrorist
A stabbing took place in Huwara, West Bank, with one wounded from the terror attack. Paramedics at the Magen David Adom (MDA) said the victim was lightly wounded in the shoulder. The female terrorist was reportedly shot and wounded, and later died in hospital.

This attack comes a short time after the terrorists responsible for the murder of Dee family members were killed in a Nablus raid. Two of the terrorists were members of Hamas.

Wednesday saw a flare up of attacks from Gaza from both the terror organizations ruling the strip, Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad. The rockets started following Khader Adnan’s death from his hunger strike, in the custody of the Israeli Prison Service.

For the past few months, tensions were high with attacks from the north, south and east of Israel. The IDF is considering a larger scale military operation in response.
Israel’s Finance Minister Smotrich transfers more PA funds to victims of terrorism
Israel’s Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich on Wednesday signed off on a second round of financial transfers to victims of terrorism from Palestinian Authority funds, offsetting the rewards the P.A. pays to terrorists and their families.

Smotrich ordered Israel Tax Authority Director Eran Yaacov to transfer NIS 3.2 million ($876,000) from revenues collected for the P.A. to victims of terrorism and their families.

This follows a previous transfer in January of NIS 138.8 million ($39.5 million) in accordance with a court order.

The P.A. pays monthly stipends to Palestinians and/or their families for carrying out terrorist attacks against Israel. In 2021, the P.A. paid out an estimated NIS 512 million ($157 million) as part of this “pay-for-slay” policy.

“I signed on to the offset of the terrorist funds that the Palestinian Authority transfers to the families of terrorists. We deducted 3.2 million shekels which will be transferred as compensation to the families of victims of terrorism,” Smotrich said.

“The State of Israel stops the financing of terrorism by the Palestinian Authority,” he added. “We will not allow this absurd situation to happen.”

Smotrich in February announced the signing of an order doubling the amount of tax and tariff revenue Israel withholds from the P.A. because of its “pay-for-slay” policy.
Figures show Palestinian importers game system, deny Israel billions in tax revenue
Figures released by the Israel Tax Authority reveal that in recent years, Israel has failed to properly validate manifests of imports it processes on behalf of the Palestinian Authority, resulting in billions of shekels being paid to Ramallah without justification, including 1.5 billion shekels ($411 million) in 2021 alone.

Since the Palestinian Authority does not have its own ports, Israel collects the various import taxes and levies on its behalf when they arrive in Israeli ports. The goods then get transferred via trucks to the Palestinian Authority and the taxes are also transferred by Israel. However, the amount of taxes Israel collects and then hands over is determined by the manifests declared by the Palestinian importer.

Israel Hayom can report that in most cases, the crates that contain Palestinian imports are emptied in Israeli ports and much of the content does not reach its final destination but is rather sold in Israel itself, but none of the taxes stay in Israel.

As a result, Israel loses twice: First because it transfers the tax for the entire crate to the Palestinians, and second, because it never collects the import taxes it could have received for the goods that stay in Israel.

This "Crate Sting" has already been exposed in 2020 in a State Comptroller report. In 2016, the report noted, 35% of the imported goods were never transferred to the Palestinian Authority despite being earmarked as such in the manifest. In 2017, the figure rose to 37%, and in 2018 to 41%.

Rather than reaching the Palestinian importers they were sold in Israel illegally, having never been officially imported to the state and never taxed.
Israel seizes 189 crypto accounts linked to terror groups since 2021 – report
Israel has seized 189 cryptocurrency accounts on the Binance exchange site linked to Palestinian and Islamist terror groups since 2021, according to a report Thursday.

Most of the crypto wallets confiscated by the Defense Ministry’s National Bureau for Counter Terror Financing (NBCTF) belonged to just three Palestinian currency exchange firms — Al Mutahadun For Exchange, Dubai Company for Exchange, and Al Wefaq Co. For Exchange, according to Reuters, which cited government documents.

The three companies are designated as terror entities for their suspected transfer of funds to Hamas.

Separately, the NBCTF said it confiscated two further accounts on Binance, the world’s largest bitcoin exchange site, to “thwart” activities by the Islamic State terror group, according to a document from January, signed by Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, which had previously not been reported.

The file did not list the amount of funds seized or how the accounts were linked to the terror organization.

Cryptocurrencies ostensibly provide a high level of anonymity, making them particularly attractive for financing criminal activity or terrorism. Bitcoin has also faced criticism over the use of the currency on underground websites where people buy drugs and guns.


PMW: Who is the PA’s “national symbol and a model of inspiration for the masses”?
Marwan Barghouti is a Palestinian terrorist who has served 21 years of 5 life sentences. Having orchestrating numerous terror attacks he was convicted of three shooting attacks in which 5 people – 4 Israelis and a Greek monk - were murdered during the PA’s 5-year (2000 – 2005) terror campaign, also referred to as “the second Intifada.”

Marking the anniversary of Barghouti’s arrest – in PA terms his “kidnapping” – the PA and Fatah reiterated their endorsement and admiration for this terrorist.

Abbas’ deputy in Fatah emphasized Barghouti’s importance in “the Palestinian struggle,” and specifically mentioned his central role in the second Intifada, during which Palestinian terrorists murdered 1,200 Israelis:
Fatah Deputy Chairman Mahmoud Al-Aloul: “Blessings to beloved and precious Marwan Barghouti (i.e., terrorist, orchestrated murder of 5), the [Fatah] Central Committee member, the extraordinary leader, on the 22nd anniversary of the occupation kidnapping (i.e., arresting) him. There is no doubt that Marwan Barghouti, from our perspective, from the perspective of the story of the Palestinian struggle, Marwan Barghouti is an important peak in the Palestinian people’s path... Marwan Barghouti, the leader of the Palestinian people’s masses, the leader of the [second] Intifada…Marwan Barghouti is a leader of whom we are proud to no end, because of his sacrifice.”

[Official PA TV News, April 15, 2023]

Abbas’ Fatah Movement further stressed that terrorist Barghouti is considered by the PA’s ruling party to be an “inspiration” and a “prominent symbol”:
“The Fatah Movement emphasized that fighting commander, Fatah Central Committee member, and prisoner Marwan Barghoutiis a clear national symbol and an inspiring model of struggle for the masses of our people…

Fatah explained that fighting commander prisoner Marwan Barghouti still constitutes a prominent symbol on the path of national struggle, and noted his pioneering, national, and organizational role since he led the student movement, and afterwards his role on the ground during the first and second Intifadas (i.e., Palestinian wave of violence and terror against Israel, approximately 200 Israelis murdered, 1987-1993; PA terror campaign 2000-2005, more than 1,100 Israelis murdered).”

[Official PA daily Al-Hayat Al-Jadida, April 15, 2023]
MEMRI: Hamas: The War For Palestine Is A Religious War
In recent weeks Hamas has been making conspicuous efforts to brand the Palestinian struggle, and in particular the struggle for Jerusalem and Al-Aqsa, as "a battle of religion and faith" between Muslims and Jews, rather than a national struggle. These efforts were especially noticeable during the month of Ramadan (which ended in late April). This is because Hamas, like other terror and jihad movements, stresses the perception – articulated in many statements by its officials and articles in its press – that Ramadan as the month in which Allah grants the Muslims great victories, as exemplified by the Battle of Bader (in 624 CE), the conquest of Mecca (630), the conquest of Andalusia (711), the Battle of Ain Jalut (1260) and the "Ramadan War" of 1973 between Israel and the Arabs.[1] Another facet of this perception is the belief, which jihadi organizations aim to instill in their followers, that history repeats itself, so that such victories are possible in the future as well. Indeed, over the years these organizations have sought to create the impression of increasing their military activity during the month of Ramadan, and often managed to achieve this in practice as well. For example, on April 8, 2023 the Hamas mouthpiece Al-Risalah published an article listing the terror attacks carried out by the resistance during Ramadan, and on April 11 it published an article by Kamal Khatib, deputy chairman of the Northern Branch of the Islamic Movement in Israel, which claimed that the Muslims will recapture Jerusalem "just as Mecca was conquered by Muhammad and his followers."

Since Hamas is a branch of the Muslim Brotherhood, the perception of the struggle against Israel as a religious one has always been part of its ideology.[2] Hamas' Covenant, from 1988, which was drafted by the movement's founder, Ahmad Yassin, and contains many antisemitic motifs, states: "It is necessary to establish in the minds of all the Muslim generations that the Palestinian issue is a religious issue, and that it must be dealt with as such."[3]

Another reason for Hamas' current efforts to highlight the religious aspect of the struggle for Jerusalem and Al-Aqsa may be the recent tightening of its relations with Iran and Hizbullah,[4] as well as Hamas' and Iran's desire to present themselves as following in the footsteps of the Prophet Muhammad and the great Islamic military leaders, and to incite their followers to take action against Israel. An April 8 article in Al-Risalah stressed that this year has seen a pronounced turning point in the activity of the resistance, which "realized the slogan of uniting the fronts," i.e., acted in concert with its allies in the resistance axis, led by Iran.

This report reviews Hamas' recent efforts to establish the struggle for Jerusalem and Al-Aqsa as a religious one, as expressed in statements by its officials and in articles in the movement's press.


Why the Tehran-linked Samidoun terrorist entity must be outlawed
Nearly five years ago, the Israel-designated Palestinian terrorist organization Samidoun published a screed against this writer’s Jerusalem Post reporting about antisemitic anti-Israel activities in Germany.

On April, 8, Samidoun was catapulted into the news for organizing an anti-Israel rally in Berlin attended by a crowd of 500 mostly German Muslims, where “Death to the Jews” and “Death to Israel” were chanted.

Samidoun was founded in 2012 by operatives from the EU- and US-designated Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine terrorist organization. Samidoun says on its website that it is a “Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network” that functions as “an international network of organizers and activists working to build solidarity with Palestinian prisoners in their struggle for freedom.”

In short, Samidoun has developed a global network to stoke genocidal antisemitism and a terrorist ideology.

Its chapters span from Albuquerque, New Mexico to the Islamic Republic of Iran to Germany, from Sweden to France to Spain and beyond.

In Ottawa, Samidoun mounted a conference on April 28-30 that, according to its online description, “is taking placed in so-called Canada, but it will focus on organizing throughout North America and throughout the Palestinian diaspora and inside Palestine.”

When I started to expose Samidoun’s activities in 2018, it was scarcely on the terrorist proscription radar screen.

The German Federal government permitted Khaled Barakat, a senior member of the US- and EU-designated terrorist entity the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, to enter Germany in 2018. However, the German authorities barred Barakat from speaking engagements in June 2018. In 2020, this writer exclusively reported that the government of the Berlin city-state imposed a four-year ban on Barakat, who the PFLP said was a “coordinator” for Samidoun.

There has been solid documentation and reporting over the years that Iran supports the PFLP. The role of the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism—the clerical regime in Tehran—in supporting the PFLP should raise alarm bells and lead to a swift ban of Samidoun.
Documents appear to show Iran’s interest in Syrian phosphates for uranium production
Documents uncovered by a US/UK-based Iranian news outlet appear to show Iran’s interest in massive imports of phosphates from territory it controls in Syria as a source of uranium for its nuclear program.

According to the Iran International report on Thursday, Iran’s Atomic Energy Agency (AEOI) requested that 800,000 tons of phosphate — a rock from which uranium can be extracted — be imported from Syria and that the government cover the cost.

“In order to supply part of the uranium needed for the country’s nuclear industry, this organization [AEOI] is mulling a project to extract uranium from Syria’s phosphate mines, the exploitation of which is at the disposal of the Islamic Republic,” wrote Mohammad Eslami, chair of the AEOI.

“Due to the high grade of uranium in the phosphate soil of these mines, the extraction of the element and the preparation of yellowcake from it is technically more feasible than the extraction of uranium from low-grade radioactive mines of Iran,” the letter read.

In another document, the Iranian president’s office asks senior government officials if “the annual purchase of phosphates from Syria” can be arranged for the nuclear agency.

Yellowcake is a uranium concentrate in powder form and an early step in uranium processing. It is produced by mining uranium ore from rocks and separating the uranium from the rocks by bathing them in acid. The yellowcake can then be converted, enriched to raise its purity, and then used for weapons or energy production.


ADL: 2023 Quds Day Rallies Bring Antisemitism to the Fore
Support for Terrorism and Violence
- Imad Mughniyeh, former Hezbollah Chief of Staff, was featured on a young protestor’s t-shirt in Chicago, Illinois. Mughniyeh helped plan the April 18, 1983, bombing of the United States embassy in Beirut, Lebanon, which killed 63 people including 17 Americans and was formally charged in 1994 with participating in the March 17, 1992, bombings of the Israeli embassy in Buenos Aires, which killed 29 people in the AMIA cultural building.

- Protestors in Sacramento carried signs reading, “From Sacramento to Gaza, Globalize the intifada,” recalling the First and Second Palestinian Intifadas. The Second Intifada was one of the most violent and deadly eras of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict during which scores of Israeli civilians were targeted and killed by terror groups. One speaker said, "Short of another intifada, Palestinians will continue to face discrimination in their homeland, and the possibility of a just peace will continue to elude us.”

- Speakers in NYC stated, "we must perpetuate an intifada” and led chants of “there is only one solution, intifada, revolution.” Within Our Lifetime’s Nerdeen Kiswani stated that Israel “has no right to exist. And yes, it is our mission to ensure it no longer exists because as long as Israel exists it is a threat to world peace.”

- A sign in NYC venerated Ibraham al Nabulsi, a senior commander in the U.S.-designated terror group Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigade, who was allegedly involved in several shootings in the West Bank. He died in 2022 during a firefight with the Israeli military.

- In Houston a speaker declared “we will continue to resist until the Zionist cancer is uprooted from the face of the earth. We would rather die like these Palestinians have been dying the last 75 years and die with pride and honor.” Additionally, student activist Anna Rajagopal approvingly quoted PFLP terrorist Leila Khaled justifying all armed responses to Israel’s actions. Rajagopal concluded by declaring, "resistance by any means necessary!”




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This blog may be a labor of love for me, but it takes a lot of effort, time and money. For over 19 years and 40,000 articles I have been providing accurate, original news that would have remained unnoticed. I've written hundreds of scoops and sometimes my reporting ends up making a real difference. I appreciate any donations you can give to keep this blog going.

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