Friday, October 06, 2023

10/06 Links Pt1: Rewarding a UN antisemite; UNRWA textbooks prompt funding ban in House bill; Jailed Iranian woman wins Nobel Peace Prize

From Ian:

Israel must rely only on itself when it comes to existential threats
One of the cornerstones of Israel's National Security Strategy, from Ze'ev Jabotinsky in 1923, to Ben Gurion in 1953 and Netanyahu in 2018, is the determination that Israel will defend itself by itself without any outside help, even from the United States. In 2018, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu added to the strategy another cornerstone clarifying that Israel must prepare itself for the scenario in which there is one or more nuclear-armed states in the region while doing everything within its power to prevent this.

There is no doubt that signing an agreement with Saudi Arabia that will include normalization is a task of the highest priority, which justifies taking many risks, so as not to miss the opportunity; but not all risks and not at any price. The reports on a potential deal, under the auspices of the Americans, raise substantial questions regarding some core issues and the required cost.

What is so problematic with the apparent nuclear concessions (in both Saudi Arabia and Iran) and how is this linked to an Israel-US defense treaty and to the certainty of this resulting in a nuclear arms race in the Middle East?

The Saudi demands that Israel can accept on the assumption that it will maintain its qualitative military edge (QME) are as follows: a defense treaty, mainly against Iran; expansion of arms deals; and a free-trade zone.

The problematic Saudi demand is the wish for a complete nuclear fuel cycle on its own soil. The "civilian excuse" is that they need these capabilities in order to exploit their natural resources: mining uranium; converting it to "yellowcake;" and then converting it to gas (UF6) and enriching it to the level required to produce fuel rods for power reactors (to generate electricity) for internal use as well as for export.

The Palestinian issue is of less interest to the Saudis, but it is being pushed very hard by the US. I think that dealing with this problem will be less problematic, as it is not an existential threat to Israel, so a solution will be incorporated into the agreements in some way. What is important is to make sure that it will not take center stage and divert attention away from the truly important and dangerous aspects of the deal.

The Saudi demands stem from the Iranian nuclear deal in 2015, which granted independent enrichment and advanced centrifuge R&D to the Iranians, on their own soil. One can understand where the Saudis are coming from without agreeing with them. The cheating Iranians received this, so why not also them? This argument will, of course, also be used by other countries such as Egypt, the UAE, Turkey, and Algeria and will start a nuclear arms race in the Middle East. Raising the faulty and misleading argument that if the Saudis do not receive these capabilities from the US under a controlled mechanism, they will receive them from other countries such as China, is not legitimate, as China has offered the Saudis only a controlled power reactor and not an enrichment program.

The main argument for allowing the enrichment on Saudi soil is based on Saudi Arabia's agreeing to any oversight and management requested by the US and the International Atomic Energy Agency, which will prevent a future conversion of these capabilities to military purposes. But that is false. Teams of American and Israeli experts have reportedly found technical ways to "square the circle" but this does not change the basic cornerstone that a country cannot roll the dice when it comes to nuclear capabilities.
A New Year resolution for the UN
MK Ohad Tal is an Israeli legislator representing the Religious Zionist party and a former director of World Bnei Akiva

The whole world is starting to make good on their Jewish New Year resolutions at this time of year. I agree with PM Netanyahu that António Guterres, Secretary-General of the United Nations, should be making a few New Year resolutions of his own.

The United Nations does have its virtues. It played a pivotal role in the re-instatement of a Jewish State in the Land of Israel by irrevocably recognizing, in the UN’s very own founding charter, the Jewish people’s indigenous right to the Land of Israel (including Judea-Samaria). And as good neighbors in the Middle East, Israel is delighted that the United Nations did just as much and more, for the ancient Arab nation whose 20-odd spacious states are also members of the UN.

But today, the UN’s approach to the only Jewish state in the world is embarrassingly hostile. This was acknowledged a decade ago by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, but the problem continues.

Secretary-General Guterres has personally issued twenty-six (!) reports criticizing and de-legitimizing Israel. The most recent was issued just a few months ago. These reports criticize Israel for an ordinary life activity - “advancing housing plans” - which all governments in the world engage in, of course. Criticizing normal life activities of and for the Jewish people is simply discriminatory. No-one levels such criticism on any other nation which is building homes for a budding population.

Over and over again, the United Nations’ secretary-general decries the only Jewish state in the world for alleged discrimination against the Arab nation. He disregards that an entire Arab state, Jordan, larger than Israel, has already been carved out of the land recognized as the Jewish homeland. Moreover, uncensured by Guterres, this Arab state openly practices discriminatory land practices against Jews -- by limiting land rights of those who are not “Jordanian nationals” - and by limiting “Jordanian nationals” to “any person not being Jewish”.
Arsen Ostrovsky: Rewarding a UN antisemite
Every year, the American Branch of the International Law Association (ABILA) presents its “Outstanding Achievement Award” to a lawyer or jurist who, the organization believes, has made outstanding contributions to the field of international law.

This is a laudable endeavor, but it is puzzling that ABILA chose to give this year’s award to Navi Pillay, a U.N. official with a long-standing and deep-seated hostility towards and bias against Israel.

On paper, Pillay’s CV seems impeccable. She is a South African jurist, legal trailblazer and judge who served as a former U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights.

The reality is much uglier: Pillay has devoted her long-standing international platform—including as the current chair of the permanent U.N. Commission of Inquiry (CoI) on Israel—to the relentless vilification of the Jewish state and the whitewashing of Palestinian terror under the guise of human rights and international law.

The CoI was created in the wake of the 2021 conflict between Hamas and Israel. It is ostensibly tasked with investigating supposed “underlying root causes” of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, but the resolution establishing the commission did not even mention Hamas, a U.S.-designated terror organization sworn to Israel’s destruction that has fired almost 4,500 rockets at Israeli civilians.

Even before Pillay was appointed to the CoI, she had a long history of bias against Israel, referring to the Jewish state as an “apartheid regime” and accusing it of “war crimes” and “crimes against humanity.”

Pillay is an ardent advocate of the racist Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement, whose primary goal is the destruction of the Jewish state. She has said that she hopes the BDS campaign will “catch on, as did the anti-apartheid movement.”

As far back as 2009, when Pillay was serving as U.N. High Commissioner, she applauded Iran’s participation in a U.N. conference purportedly dedicated to combating racism that was headed by then-Iranian president, genocidal antisemite and Holocaust denier Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.


UN Watch: Confronting agenda Item 7 and anti-Israel bias at the UN
Hillel Neuer denounces agenda Item 7, the only agenda item targeting a single country at the United Nations Human Rights Council.

To find out more visit UN Watch Item 7


Morton Klein: President Biden's extraordinary hostility to Israel
President Joe Biden and his administration have been pursuing the same hostile-to-Israel policies promoted by the Obama-Biden administration.

Let's not be fooled. Extolling "ironclad friendship" between America are simply meaningless and phony words when Biden is enriching the Iranian terror regime with billions of dollars in funds and sanctions relief; pressing Israel to cede her sovereignty and security to a Palestinian terror state on "Auschwitz lines" that would render Israel indefensible; and sending over $1.5 billion to Hamas-allied UNRWA and to the Palestinian regime thereby freeing up funds for the Palestinian Authority to continue paying Arabs lifetime pensions to murder Jews and Americans.

These policies threaten Israel's existence and Jewish and American lives.

And that isn't all. The Biden administration took scores of additional actions that are hostile to Israel and/or Jews. Zionist Organization of America (ZOA) and others wrote about these actions as they occurred. Here are a few highlights:
Biden pressured Israel to surrender 330 square miles of natural-gas-rich maritime territory to Hezbollah-controlled Lebanon, thereby enriching Hezbollah with billions of dollars of revenue, and diminishing Israeli maritime security and resources. Former US Ambassador to Israel David Friedman decried that this deal gave 100% to Lebanon, and 0% to Israel.
Biden's combating antisemitism strategy downgraded the excellent IHRA definition of antisemitism by embracing the dangerous NEXUS and JDA definitions that permit antisemitism masked as hatred for the Jewish state and Zionism. Biden's antisemitism strategy also failed to address major sources of antisemitism other than white supremacy; diluted antisemitism's uniqueness by lumping antisemitism together with "Islamophobia, homophobia, transphobia, and misogyny"; and sought to incorporate other hatreds to dilute Holocaust education.
Biden reinstituted Obama's anti-Jewish boycott of joint US-Israeli science and technology research, cooperation, and projects over the artificial 1949 ceasefire lines. The boycott discriminates against primarily Jewish institutions such as Ariel University. By contrast, Palestinian Arab institutions over the ceasefire lines are receiving US assistance. The US Office of Palestinian Affairs just announced a joint doctoral degree program with"Al Quds" University, located in Jerusalem and throughout the "West Bank."
Biden has been using a potential game-changing Saudi-Israeli deal to demand Israeli concessions to the Palestinian Authority terror regime, including that a Palestinian state solution must be kept open.
"Al Akhbar: US Envoy Pushed Israeli Total Withdrawal from Lebanese Border’s Disputed Areas"
Hezbollah-affiliated Lebanese newspaper Al Akhbar on Friday published a report headlined, “Hochstein postponed his return, and Tel Aviv is angry about the negotiations being exposed! Did the enemy back down from offering to evacuate Ghajar?”

The report suggests that US envoy Amos Hochstein, who visited Beirut last summer, proposed an outline according to which Israel would completely withdraw from all points of contention on the border with Lebanon, in exchange for removing Hezbollah military units from the vicinity of the border.

As the headline stressed, Hochstein pressured Israel to also surrender the thriving village of Ghajar, an Alawite-Arab community located at the triangle where the borders of three countries meet: Lebanon, Syria, and Israel.

Until 2022, a barrier was placed at the entrance to the village, and entry was only allowed to residents and IDF soldiers. In September 2022, after the Ghajar council erected a fence blocking the passage to the village from Lebanon, the barriers at the entrance to the village and the restrictions on entering it from Israel were removed, and the IDF removed its barrier.

The village has developed a thriving tourism industry that caters to Israeli Jews and Arabs. They sell the good air, the fabulous view, and great traditional cuisine.

As of 2023, northern Ghajar is under Israeli control, and Lebanon and Hezbollah continue to demand Israel’s withdrawal from the northern part of the village, as well as from the Kfarchouba hills and the Shebaa Farms. To these claims, Hezbollah has added a demand to return seven villages to Lebanese sovereignty.

According to Al-Akhbar, the serious discussion on Israel’s complete withdrawal began “after the enemy requested a secret meeting between two military delegations, an Israeli and a Lebanese, under the auspices of the commander of the international forces operating in the south, to discuss the border and investigate violations of Resolution 1701.”
Idit Silman to become third Israeli minister to visit Saudi Arabia - report
Environmental Protection Minister Idit Silman is set to become the third Israeli minister to visit Saudi Arabia next week, KAN News reported Friday afternoon.

Silman will reportedly attend the MENACW 2023 (Middle East and North Africa Climate Week conference), one of four Regional Climate Weeks held across the world ahead of the COP28 UN Climate Change Conference in Dubai, UAE.

As per the report, Silman requested that a delegation of 13 Israeli officials from her ministry, the Foreign Ministry and the National Security Council joins her in Saudi Arabia. Silman to make history, following in Katz, Karhi's footsteps

Silman's expected trip to Saudi Arabia follows to recent visits made by Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi and Tourism Minister Haim Katz.

Katz became highest-ranking Israeli official to publicly visit Riyadh last month when he attended the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) conference.

Karhi made history on Wednesday as the first Israeli politician to deliver a speech in Saudi Arabia, as talks of a normalization deal ramp up.
Democrats' support for Israel will be tested with normalization
One must question the motivations behind this criticism that was also prevalent during President Barack Obama's eight years in the White House. It appears that some Democrats are prioritizing their political agendas over the enduring partnership between the US and Israel. This is evident in their reluctance to wholeheartedly support the recent normalization deal with Saudi Arabia, a move that should be lauded as a historic step toward regional stability.

Furthermore, it is essential to remember that Israel has legitimate security concerns that are often overshadowed by political rhetoric. The country faces constant threats from terrorist organizations and hostile neighbors 24 hours a day. It is entirely reasonable for Israel to take measures to ensure the safety of its citizens, including maintaining control over key strategic areas such as the Golan Heights in Judea and Samaria.

The criticism directed at Israel fails to acknowledge the complexities of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the unique challenges the nation faces. While a peaceful resolution to this long-standing conflict is undoubtedly desirable, it cannot be achieved through one-sided condemnation of Israel. Instead, both parties must be willing to come to the table and negotiate in good faith. Israel has shown time and time again they are willing to come to the table but the Palestinian Authority and Hamas have refused because that means they would have to recognize Israel as a sovereign nation.

Critics should also be reminded that Israel has made significant concessions for peace in the past, often met with resistance and violence from its adversaries. The path to lasting peace requires compromise and a willingness to engage in constructive dialogue, not unilateral condemnations.

The continued criticism of Israel by Biden and some Democrats is cause for major concern. It risks undermining a vital alliance in the Middle East and neglects the genuine security concerns of the Israeli people.

It is time for Biden and members of his political party to prioritize the enduring partnership between the United States and Israel, recognizing the complexities of the region and working together to promote peace and stability instead of constantly sabotaging and criticizing America's oldest and most trusted ally, the State of Israel.
Thomas Friedman Equates Trump and Netanyahu With Putin and Xi
New York Times foreign policy columnist Thomas Friedman wrote an opinion piece published by the New York Times on October 4th, entitled “How Four Leaders Are Turning the World Upside Down.” The four leaders whom Mr. Friedman lumped together in a disgusting display of moral equivalence were Russian President Vladimir Putin, Chinese President Xi Jinping, former U.S. President Donald Trump, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. He accused them all of having “created massive disruptions inside and outside their countries based on pure self-interest, rather than the interests of their people.”

Thomas Friedman’s condemnations of Putin and Xi were spot on, but he went off the rails completely by including Netanyahu and Trump on his list and claiming that Donald Trump “is the most dangerous of the four.” Friedman left out altogether North Korea’s dictator Kim Jong Un who has ramped up North Korea’s intercontinental ballistic missile testing and launches. And he skipped over Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, whose regime is arming Russia in Russia’s aggressive war against Ukraine and is providing military and financial support to Islamist terrorists.

Mr. Friedman has written several columns that have taken Prime Minister Netanyahu to task, mostly because of what he absurdly has labeled “a judicial coup led by Netanyahu.” The so-called “judicial coup” was legislation approved by Israel’s duly elected Knesset to rein in the runaway power of unelected Israeli Supreme Court judges. The judges have taken it upon themselves to invalidate laws passed by the Knesset because the judges believed the laws were not “reasonable.”

Israel’s judiciary arrogated to itself the power to override legislation and government executive actions based on the judges’ subjective judgments that not all the related aspects of the policy issues involved were adequately considered and accorded their proper weight. The judges went far beyond deciding whether the Knesset or government officials exceeded their authority as defined in Israel’s Basic Laws or arbitrarily committed an outrageous act that was grossly unjust. And they went far beyond deciding whether the Knesset or government officials unduly infringed on a person’s fundamental human rights to dignity and liberty as spelled out in the Basic Laws. Instead of serving as an independent check to ensure that these limits on legislative and executive powers were not exceeded, the Israeli Supreme Court judges have turned themselves into an unelected super-legislative branch.

Prime Minister Netanyahu and his duly elected governing coalition were attempting to restore democracy through the Israeli people’s elected representatives against a judicial “coup.”
Joel Pollak: J Street, Peter Beinart Crticize Israeli-Saudi Peace Efforts
Some left-wing groups and writers who claim to be “pro-peace” when it comes to the Middle East are criticizing a potential peace deal between Saudi Arabia and Israel because of their enmity toward the Israeli government.

U.S. President Joe Biden, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and Saudi Crown Prince Mohamed bin Salman have all been talking up the prospects of a deal between Israel and the most important Muslim country.

But the Biden administration is reportedly stalling the talks by insisting on concessions to the Palestinians that even the Saudis are not demanding, and left-wing Jewish organizations have said Biden should not make a deal unless it “include[s] measures that tangibly advance prospects for a two-state outcome to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.”

On Wednesday, J Street, the left-wing, George Soros-funded organization that frequently criticizes Israeli policies, applauded 20 Democratic Senators who insisted that the administration push for concessions to the Palestinians — whose current leaders continue to spout antisemitism and to deny Jewish rights to religious worship in Jerusalem.

“As an organization that supports the establishment of normal relations between Israel and Saudi Arabia, J Street strongly agrees that any normalization agreement should be leveraged to promote the ultimate resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict,” J Street said.

J Street vocally opposes Netanyahu, calling him a liar and a demagogue because of his judicial reform proposals.

Separately, radical left-wing pundit Peter Beinart said that a Saudi-Israeli peace would destabilize the Middle East.

“Both countries are deeply repressive,” Beinart said, failing to distinguish between Israel’s open, liberal democracy and Saudi Arabia’s authoritarian, hereditary monarchy.


Israel-Saudi peace cannot bypass Palestinians - Jordan's King Abdullah
The potential normalization agreement between Saudi Arabia and Israel under US President Joe Biden’s auspices is still the talk of the town for its massive regional and international consequences.

Many say inking such a potential normalization deal between Israel and Saudi Arabia would be a historic breakthrough in world politics. It could have a seismic effect, unlike anything the region has seen in years, and be even bigger than the signing of the Camp David Accords between Israel and Egypt more than four decades ago.

Jordan and the Palestinian Authority (PA) are keeping a close eye on what the outcome of a Saudi-Israeli deal could mean for them.

Jordan’s King Abdullah II is concerned that such a normalization agreement between Saudi Arabia and Israel may happen at his kingdom’s expense. In his recent speech at the United Nations General Assembly, he warned against sidestepping the Palestinian issue in any peace or normalization deal. What did the Abraham Accords do for the Palestinians?

The king emphasized the importance of the two-state solution as he has done in the past and referenced the Abraham Accords, a landmark normalization deal brokered in 2020 by the US between Israel, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain. He also alluded to the fact that this agreement, reached under former President Donald Trump, didn’t accomplish anything for the Palestinians.

“The Abraham Accords started something. But it will never fulfill the aspirations that we all want unless you solve the problem for the Palestinians,” King Abdullah said in his UN speech.

He made similar remarks about the US push for normalization between Israel and Saudi Arabia.


From 'Jewish treachery' to coexistence: How Egypt's textbooks have changed
On the 50th anniversary of the beginning of the Yom Kippur War, The Institute For Monitoring Peace And Culture Tolerance In School Education (IMPACT-se) reported finding an improving depiction of Israeli-Egyptian relations in school books.

IMPACT-se expressed that textbooks, for students up to grade 6, were portraying the war as more of a pre-cursor to the peace agreement that ended conflict between the two nations.

Egyptian textbooks have been analyzed yearly by the organization since 2018 and they plan to continue their investigations until 2030. Antisemitic attitudes in Egyptian textbooks

The original attitude taken by the textbooks expressed an ideology the portrayed “Jewish treachery,” IMPACT-se said. Only a year ago, a fifth grade Islamic Education textbook was removed as it compared the Yom Kippur War to the Muslim Prophet Mohammed’s wars against Jews of Arabia.

The removed book also used antisemitic stereotypes, assigning evil deeds, disloyalty and fraud to Jewish people collectively. Specifically, the books described “the Jews are people of treachery and betrayal,” emphasizing that “they are always like this” and asked students to use the internet to search for Qur’anic verses about “the treachery of the Jews."

The textbook also didn’t refer to ‘Israel’, rather substituted the name for “enemies” and “usurping Jews.”

Under the new version of the textbook, lessons celebrate an underlining tolerance and coexistence between Jews and Muslims.
UNRWA textbooks prompt funding ban in House bill
When the U.S. House of Representatives passed a series of appropriations bills last week, the U.S. State Department’s (H.R.4665) included provisions countering one organization most responsible for indoctrinating Palestinian children in Judea and Samaria to hate.

The U.N. Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) has received regular criticism for its school textbooks, which are rife with antisemitism. The House has now taken action with the inclusion of statues in the appropriations bill. The new rules will require the U.S. Secretary of State to allow funding only after certifying that taxpayer dollars are not going towards incitement.

The bill also bars support of UNRWA through contributions to international groups and requires a State Department employee to review UNRWA’s educational documents and submit reports to Congress.

The bill’s text states that procedures will be put in place to stop “UNRWA resources for disseminating anti-American, anti-Israel or anti-Semitic rhetoric; or incitement of violence.”

A similar appropriations bill to defund UNRWA was also included in the Senate version.

“The fact that the House has included these provisions within an extremely complex bill demonstrates the significance that US legislators are now placing on UNRWA’s continued incitement,” said Marcus Sheff, CEO of IMPACT-se.

Sheff said the House vote showed “that there is no blank check for hate.”
Dem Candidate Deletes Anti-Semitic McCarthy Post After Colleagues Call It ‘Disgusting’
Jones’s comment drew swift criticism on Twitter, including from members of his own party.

"This disgusting post is insulting to Jewish people and every person of faith," Josh Gottheimer (D., N.J.) said.

Rep. Jared Moskowitz (D., Fla.) responded to Jones, "I doubt your choice of religion to highlight here was coincidental."

Jones, who is running for a Republican-held seat that Democrats view as a major potential pickup, deleted his post and denied that it was intended as an attack on religious Jews.

"My point was to communicate that Kevin McCarthy, and by extension Mike Lawler, cannot possibly deliver for communities in Rockland because he’s no longer speaker," he wrote.

"Regrettably, I did not make this point clear enough, and so I have deleted the tweet. I am proud of my record of combating antisemitism in Congress," he added.

In response, Gottheimer and Moskowitz also deleted their criticism of Jones.

Jones, who was first elected to Congress in 2021, left office last year after his district lines were redrawn. He is currently running for a seat which is now held by Republican representative Mike Lawler.

During his career, Jones built a reputation as a far-left politician, backing the "defund the police" movement and allying with "squad" members such as Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D., N.Y.) and Jamaal Bowman (D., N.Y.).

He’s now trying to reframe himself as a moderate in the competitive House race. Jones recently filmed a campaign ad that showed him shaking hands with a local police chief, and he played up his "great relationship with AIPAC" in an interview with New York magazine.
Seth Frantzman: How did Israeli tech affect Azerbaijan's victory in Nagorno-Karabakh?
The Iraqi army in 1991 was also heavily reliant on Soviet era armored vehicles and systems, like the Armenian army of 2016-2020. Therefore Azerbaijan defeated Armenia through the use of modern technology, but in the end Baku had to send in ground forces to win the war at the end. Azerbaijan’s armored vehicles and ground forces equipment is still linked to the country’s past and thus relies on Russian equipment. Therefore Baku delivered a one-two punch, using modern technology from countries like Israel, with Russian and older equipment that Baku had on hand.

The conflict in 2023 in Nagorno-Karabakh that has caused 120,000 Armenians to flee was not a military conflict. It only took Baku one day to defeat the 10,000 Armenian fighters who had been blockaded in Nagorno-Karabkah for months and who had access to old munitions and old conventional weapons. In essence the conflict in Nagorno-Karabkah was decided years ago. Armenia had abandoned the Armenians there and they had been blockaded by Baku via the Lachin corridor road to Armenia. Baku also was able to get Russia on its side before the conflict. The West also appears to have signed off. This is clear because the West warned Serbia against a military build up on Kosovo’s border in late September and early October, but the West didn’t warn about Baku’s military build-up. The West views Azerbaijan’s operation as enforcing territorial integrity under the rules-based international order, which means the Armenians were viewed as “separatists” and Baku had a right to take back the area.

Therefore the story of the brief fighting in Nagorno-Karabkah that led to Armenians fleeing was not about Israeli military technology. This was an old style strategic victory for Baku. They cut the area off, they blockaded it and then they asserted their rights to it via a quick military victory at a few key points. Azerbaijan’s operations took place with Russian peacekeepers looking on, this was not a huge battle in which Baku had to hammer away at Armenian fighters in Stepanakert, the capital of Nagorno-Karabakh. This was a stratagem, presenting the Armenians with a fait accompli, and the Armenians were abandoned by the international community which had quietly accepted that this would be the outcome.

Reports suggesting Israeli arms fueled this conflict exaggerate the role of Israel’s role. Israeli defense technology has turned Azerbaijan into a modern military power that can project strength and also defend its skies. It has transformed it into a powerhouse in the South Caucasus. However, that is only part of the story of what defeated the Armenians. They were defeated because Russia abandoned them, unlike in the 1990s, and because they were cut off in Nagorno-Karabakh, a result of the international community not demanding observers and an international presence and some kind of agreement giving them autonomy. They didn’t benefit, for instance, from the support the Kosovars had in the 1990s. Baku understood this and acted accordingly.

The real story of Israel’s success in a strategic partnership with Baku goes much further and has implications for the future. Israel makes the technology that is transforming warfare, making it more precise and more technology-driven. This isn’t the heavy weapons of warfare of old, like giant 60-ton tanks, this is the nimble technology that makes conflicts faster and less deadly. Baku’s success and the tragedy that befell the Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh is more a story of larger countries such as the US and Russia, rather than a story of defense tech that helped Azerbaijan achieve overmatch on the tactical level.
Palestinian terrorist opens fire on Israeli family in West Bank
A Palestinian terrorist opened fire at an Israeli vehicle in the West Bank, the Israel Defence Force (IDF) have said.

The incident occurred on Thursday on Route 60 in Huwara, just outside Nablus (Shechem) in the West Bank.

According to the Magen David Adom emergency medical service, the vehicle’s occupants—an Israeli man and his pregnant wife, both in their 20s, and their 18-month-old baby—emerged from the attack unscathed.

IDF troops found several bullet holes in the car, as well as a number of shell casings in the area. The back window of the car, which was reportedly en route to the Tapuach Junction, was shattered by gunshots.

Video footage from a nearby vehicle showed the terrorist shooting multiple times at the vehicle with a handgun before fleeing on foot.

Following a pursuit and fire exchange with the terrorist, IDF soldiers “neutralised” the gunman, the army announced.

Four Israelis have been killed in Huwara in the past year—brothers Hallel and Yagel Yaniv in February; and father and son Shay Silas and Aviad Nir Nigrekar in August.


Shin Bet probes hack of Israeli President Herzog's Telegram account
The Shin Bet security agency is probing a hack of President Isaac Herzog's account on the Telegram messaging app, the President's Residence in Jerusalem announced on Thursday. According to an initial investigation, the background of the hack was criminal rather than terrorism-related. No information was compromised, and the account has since been restored, according to the Shin Bet.

According to an initial investigation, the background of the hack was criminal rather than terrorism-related. No information was compromised, and the account has since been restored, according to the Shin Bet.

Gilad Leibovitch, academic director for a wide array of cybersecurity-related study tracks at the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology in Haifa, told The Jerusalem Post on Thursday that the hackers had likely hoped to obtain high-level intelligence information.

"The most common technique used by hackers is 'phishing.' They present themselves as a trustworthy person or corporate entity, sometimes impersonating the official communications of an app such as Telegram, and trick the recipient into revealing sensitive information," explained Leibovitch.

Last year, a cleaner formerly employed at the home of then-Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz pleaded guilty to aiding hackers that Jerusalem said were affiliated with the Iranian regime.


MEMRI: In Afghan Taliban Video, Boy Narrates Antisemitic Story: 'Death To The Unbelievers! Death, Death To America! Long Live The Mujahideen!'
The following report is now a complimentary offering from MEMRI's Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor (JTTM). For JTTM subscription information, click here.

On September 28, 2023, an Afghan Taliban channel on YouTube published a short video of a small boy who identifies himself as Mawlawi Mohammad Ahmad Hamid, the "general commander of the mujahideen" in the north, with a gun slung over his shoulder standing among Taliban commanders.[1] He recites antisemitic and jihadi teachings. Mawlawi is a title meaning "Islamic religious scholar."

The YouTube channel is named "Di Haqaiqo Hindarah [The Mirror of Truths]." Speaking in Dari, the boy narrates a story about a dog being more loyal to his owner than Muslims – who are loyal to unbelievers – are to Allah. He also recites a poem, apparently taught to him by someone else, praising jihad, Islam, the mujahideen, and Muslims, but his recitation is unclear. Mawlawi Amanuddin Mansoor, the general commander of the 217th Umari Corps of Afghan Taliban's Islamic army, sits on the left side of the boy. The video was recorded in the 217th Umari Army Corps in Kunduz Province.

"You Went Through The Door Of A Jew? Think Of Yourself – Am I Unfaithful, Or Are You?"

"Those who reside in paradise are faqir [ascetic, poor] people... These are the people who during their lifetime did not go to the door of an unbeliever, did not go to the door of a Jew, did not eat their food, and did not demand their needs from any unbeliever except from Allah. These are the people – most of whom are in heaven, most of them are poor and most of them are the guests of Allah.

"I will tell you a story... When a person was worshiping God in a cave on a mountain where he had enough food and water, God stopped his food and water for one day, then two, then three days. Because God stopped his food and water, this man went down from the cave of the mountain to a Jewish tribe and a Jewish settlement, and he asked a Jew for bread. The moment the Jewish man gave him some bread, a dog who was following the man started to bother him.

"This man threw a loaf of bread into the mouth of the dog to save himself from the dog, and [the dog] did not bite him. Finally, the bread ran out and the dog did not leave the man alone; and the man said: You unfaithful dog! The bread that your owner gave me is gone. What else do you want from me?

"The dog said: judge whether you are unfaithful or me: I stay hungry for nights, I do not go leave my owner's door. But God, who is the true owner of me and you, is the Creator of sustenance for us. He has not given you food for three days, so you entered the house of an unbeliever? You went through the door of a Jew? Think of yourself – am I unfaithful, or are you?"
We Are All Mahsa
This is the first time we have seen absolute unity in the message. While previous protests had some underlying notions of overthrowing the regime, some were about specific reforms. This time around, the Iranian people have been very clear from the beginning that this movement is about regime change. Over four decades, the Iranian people have been duped by reformist candidates and promises of behavioral change that have all fallen flat. They will no longer accept any talk of reform or referendums. They just don’t believe they’ll see any real change under this regime.

Another major difference in these protests is the expansiveness. While the protests have not been as consistent as they were in the first few months after Mahsa’s death, throughout this year, there were demonstrations in all 31 provinces throughout the country in urban, rural and suburban areas. There were protests at universities, grade schools, the bazaar, among retirees, industry workers in Iran’s oil and steel refineries and more. We even saw protests in places like Qom, a clerical, religious city and traditionally a place where the mullahs find deep support.

This movement isn’t just about the cool kids of Tehran we saw in 2009. It is a country-wide movement where people of all backgrounds are uniting to say they want different governance. They want freedom.

And it’s that simplicity in their message that has so many people around the world supporting and rooting for the Iranian people to get their basic rights. Thanks to social media, celebrities, musicians, influencers and politicians lent their support to the Iranian people, helping to echo their message. Alongside the protests in Iran, there were solidarity marches in various cities throughout Canada, the US, Europe and Israel.

The support from Israel was particularly special, as it dispelled the false narratives of the regime that the people of Iran are at war with the people of Israel. On the contrary, Israelis from top leadership down to rights groups marched, hung murals, lit landmark buildings and made it clear that Israelis are standing in support of the Iranian people.

Iranians have received support from all different arenas. I just got back from the United Nations, where on the periphery of the UN General Assembly, a group hosted a Woman, Life, Freedom film festival where a short by Moriah Films that I narrated, “The Women of Iran,” was featured. It was a beautiful day honoring the freedom-seekers in Iran, ironically in the same building where Iran’s regime is not condemned; where they receive top positions on human rights and women’s rights committees and where Iran’s President Ebrahim Raisi, “the butcher” was set to speak only a couple days later.

The Iranian people have constantly looked to Washington D.C. and wanted more support. For many, to support regime change in Iran is the antidote to many global ailments. For those paying attention to global terrorism, Iran is currently supporting proxies in Lebanon, Iraq, Syria, Yemen, Gaza and the West Bank. They are still the world’s number one exporter of terror. For those concerned about the war in Ukraine, it is Iran that is manufacturing drones at this very moment to sell to Russia to use on Ukrainians. In terms of national security here in the US, just look south of our border, where Iran is increasing its presence in countries like Brazil, Venezuela and Bolivia.

But there is no case stronger than that of the Iranian people’s call for basic human rights, so that they are not executed for a social media post or arrested for walking down the street with a significant other.

It may have been a yearning for my parents’ stories that first piqued my interest in telling the stories of Iranian people, but now it’s their virtue, as a freedom-loving, freedom-deserving people that I want to share with the world.

Let’s tell their story together.
Jailed Iranian woman wins Nobel Peace Prize for fighting oppression
Imprisoned activist Narges Mohammadi, who has campaigned for women's rights, democracy and against the death penalty in Iran for years, won the Nobel Peace Prize on Friday.

Mohammadi, 51, has done her work despite facing numerous arrests and spending years behind bars for her activism.

"This prize is first and foremost a recognition of the very important work of a whole movement in Iran with with its undisputed leader, Nargis Mohammadi," said Berit Reiss-Andersen, the chair of the Norwegian Nobel Committee who announced the prize in Oslo. "The impact of the prize is not for the Nobel committee to decide upon. We hope that it is an encouragement to continue the work in whichever form this movement finds to be fitting."

Mohammadi's most recent incarceration began when she was detained in 2021 after she attended a memorial for a person killed in nationwide 2019 protests sparked by an increase in gasoline prices. She's been held at Tehran's notorious Evin Prison, whose inmates include those with Western ties and political prisoners.

Reiss-Andersen said Mohammadi has been imprisoned 13 times and convicted five times. In total, she has been sentenced to 31 years in prison. She is the 19th woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize and the second Iranian woman, after human rights activist Shirin Ebadi won the award in 2003. Mohammadi was behind bars for the recent protests over the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini in police custody. That sparked one of the most intense challenges ever to Iran's theocracy. More than 500 people were killed in a heavy security crackdown while over 22,000 others were arrested.

From behind bars, Mohammadi contributed an opinion piece for The New York Times.

"What the government may not understand is that the more of us they lock up, the stronger we become," she wrote.

There was no immediate reaction from Iranian state television and other state-controlled media. Some semiofficial news agencies acknowledged Mohammadi's win in online messages, citing foreign press reports.


Daniel Greenfield: Biden’s Iran Hostage ‘Swap’ Allows Iranian Agents to Remain in U.S.
Iran gets $6 billion and we get to keep their agents.

The frequent New York Times contributor pardoned by US President Joe Biden after being charged as a paid foreign agent of Iran says he’s planning to return to teaching.

“I am planning to resume teaching American politics and international relations as I did most recently in 2022 at Umass Boston,” Kaveh Afrasiabi told The Algemeiner by email.

I’m not sure how the next hostage deal could get any worse, but I have every faith that the Biden administration will find a way. Maybe next time the provisions will also name Iran’s agents to top positions at the Pentagon.

Sorry, that one already happened too.

Tabatabai’s bio now describes her as the Chief of Staff to the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Special Operations and Low Intensity Conflict. Up from a Senior Advisor last year.

In 2014, a year before Tabatabai began working as a NATO consultant, she joined an initiative by the Iranian Foreign Ministry to mobilize “Iranians who have established affiliations with the leading international think-tanks and academic institutions, mainly in Europe and the US.”

Before Tabatabai testified about the Iran Deal in Congress, she allegedly checked in with the head of an Iranian Foreign Ministry think tank. “I am scheduled to go to the Congress to give a talk about the nuclear program. I will bother you in the coming days,” she wrote.

Does she still have her job? Obviously.

So maybe in the next deal, Iran gets to name three of its agents as cabinet members. And then the next president.




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