Elder Of Ziyon - Israel News: Saudi Arabia

Showing posts with label Saudi Arabia. Show all posts

Thursday, November 17, 2022

11/17 Links Pt1: Melanie Phillips: It’s time for Israel to untie the American apron strings; Netanyahu: Israel-Saudi Normalization Could End Israeli-Palestinian Conflict

From Ian:

Alan Baker: Palestinian leadership venturing into international legal field

In addition to their regular, annual shopping list of false and flawed political allegations directed to the court against Israel, the Palestinians are now requesting that the court, by means of a resolution that they initiated in the UN General Assembly’s Special Political and Decolonization Committee to weigh the legal consequences of prolonged annexation of what they claim to be Palestinian territory.

This is despite the fact that there has never been any internationally accepted legal determination that there exists Palestinian territory, as such. Similarly, this question remains an agreed negotiating issue by the Palestinians themselves, pursuant to the internationally endorsed Israeli-Palestinian Oslo Accords (1993-95).

In addition, the Palestinian leadership is also asking the Court to examine Israel’s alleged crime of altering the demographic composition, character and status of the Holy City of Jerusalem, claiming the city to be solely Palestinian.

But more curiously, in this request to the world court, they are attempting to invent what they believe to be a new, curious international status of prolonged occupation. They are asking the court to determine the extent to which such a non-existent status of prolonged occupation has legal consequences for states and the UN.

In fact, no such status is recognized by international law.

Even the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), which is universally acknowledged to be the ultimate arbiter of what constitutes international humanitarian law, has never determined a time limit for the occupation of territory.

Netanyahu: Israel-Saudi Normalization Could End Israeli-Palestinian Conflict

Israel and Saudi Arabia reaching a formal peace agreement would “effectively end the Israeli-Palestinian conflict,” former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu predicted in a new interview with “Call Me Back” podcast host Dan Senor.

“Understand that the Abraham Accords, the peace treaties that Israel had with four Arab states: the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Sudan and Morocco — that didn’t happen without Saudi approval, because at least some of these countries like to know what their big neighbor, Saudi Arabia, is thinking about [the agreements],” Netanyahu, who is likely to head Israel’s next government following elections earlier this month, said. “And I assure you, [Riyadh] wasn’t negative about it.”

Normalization with Saudi Arabia would “open up all sorts of possibilities,” Netanyahu told Senor, the co-author of Start-Up Nation: The Story of Israel’s Economic Miracle. The current opposition leader cited the physical results of such an agreement — ”connecting the Saudi rail system” — as well as the business perks — giving Saudis “direct accessibility to Israeli innovation and technology” — as benefits of a negotiated agreement between Jerusalem and Riyadh.

Netanyahu also addressed his previous government’s coordination with Russia in Syria, where Russian forces are on the ground — and where Israeli military units have often targeted Iranian and Syrian facilities and weapons transfers.

David Singer: MBS & King Abdullah keep Hashemite Kingdom of Palestine alive

The HKoP solution also offered the Arab populations of Gaza, the 'West Bank' and Palestinian Arab refugees in other locations:
· “a legal identity—a globally respected citizenship that allows a person to operate in the modern world. Labor in this day and age is mobile and having citizenship in a country that facilitates such mobility is critical to human development.”
· “Palestinians in Arab countries like Lebanon can then become citizens of this enlarged kingdom while also getting full residency rights in Lebanon, equivalent to what an EU citizen has in the European Union outside his or her home country. This would allow the Palestinians to gain full civil rights as legal foreign residents without impacting the local political or sectarian balance in these countries. The GCC, the EU, the US, Canada, and others can also help support this solution by granting this Jordanian–Palestinian passport easier access to their labor markets.”

The Saudi proposal’s author - Ali Shihabi – is a confidant of MBS and a member of the Advisory Board appointed by MBS to report to him on the building of a new US$500 billion mega city – Neom - in northern Saudi Arabia bordering Israel.

Shihabi had lamented on the absence of a response from any Israeli politician to his plan on 14 August.

This lack of Israeli interest was ongoing when the 21 September meeting agreed:
“to work with regional and international partners to shed light on the tragic situation of the Palestinians in light of the deadlock in the peace process and the absence of any glimmer of hopeand to urge them to take practical steps to support the resumption of dialogue on the basis of the Arab Peace Initiative, United Nations resolutions and relevant peace references, in addition to reviving the diplomatic track to overcome the despair and lack of a vision toward achieving the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people and establishing their state with Jerusalem as its capital.”

MBS was not at this meeting but was subsequently appointed Saudi Arabia’s Prime Minister on 27 September.

MBS, King Abdullah, PLO Leader Mahmoud Abbas and Hamas Leader Ismail Haniyeh have not rejected the HKoP solution.

MBS and King Abdullah’s non-participation at Algiers offers the glimmer of hope that the Hashemite Kingdom of Palestine can soon become a conflict-ending reality.

11/08 Links Pt1: Israel Won’t Ever Be the Country of American Fantasies—Nor Should It Aspire to Be; US Backs IHRA Definition After UN Criticism; German institute holds ‘Shoah, Nakba’ event on date of Kristallnacht

From Ian:

Israel Won’t Ever Be the Country of American Fantasies—Nor Should It Aspire to Be

Following last week’s election, the veteran Middle East reporter Thomas Friedman authored a New York Times column under the headline “The Israel We Knew Is Gone,” full of dire predictions about what will befall the Jewish state now that its citizens have returned its longest-serving prime minister to power. Daniel Gordis dissects the column’s faulty assumptions and misguided conclusions, which distill misconceptions that plague much American commentary on Israel:
Here’s the heart of the problem. There are many people around the world who want Israel to be something it does not wish to be. They want it to be successful, but humble. They want it to be strong and secure, but still desperate for foreign support of all sorts. They want it to be Jewish, but in a “nice” kind of way. Israeli dancing (which I haven’t seen here in years), flags at the right time, a country filled with “Hatikvah moments,” as some call them. A country traditional enough to be heartwarming, but not so traditional that it would dare imply that less intense forms of Jewish life cannot make it. A country steeped in memory, but also one that is finally willing to move on.

An Israel moderate in every way would be an Israel easy to love. It would be a source of pride, but not a source of shame. It would be an Israel that would make us feel great as Americans and as Jews. The only problem is that that Israel doesn’t exist, and it never has.

And what of Friedman’s more specific gripes?
Tom Friedman writes that “Netanyahu has been propelled into power by bedfellows who see Israeli Arab citizens as a fifth column who can’t be trusted,” intimating that Israeli Arabs are not a fifth column. Some are; some aren’t. . . . I’ve interviewed many Arab women and men who are quite the opposite. But if you live in the Negev, if you have farmland you can’t protect from Arabs in the south or the north, you’re fearful. If you’re a young Jewish Israeli woman afraid to walk in downtown Beer Sheva, you don’t think a “fifth column” is a ludicrous claim. . . . Friedman can dismiss it, but Israelis increasingly don’t. The left and center ignore the issue, and now, Israelis are ignoring them.

Eugene Kontorovich [WSJ]Israel’s Right-Wing Coalition Gets the Cold Shoulder From Biden

The victory of Benjamin Netanyahu’s right-wing coalition has many on the left bemoaning the end of democracy in Israel. Even before voting began, Sen. Robert Menendez (D., N.J.) threatened harm to bilateral relations should Israelis vote to the right. The State Department has said it would boycott some right-wing ministers, and President Biden waited almost a week before calling to congratulate Mr. Netanyahu. Yet Secretary of State Antony Blinken apparently had time Friday to phone Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, who last stood for election (to a four-year term) in 2005.

What has degraded Israeli democracy, according to critics, is the electoral success of Itamar Ben-Gvir’s party. Mr. Ben-Gvir’s critics cite his past in the far-right Kahanist movement. For all the consternation, one would think he was the future prime minister, rather than the head of a second-tier party, with seven of 120 seats in the Knesset.

Yet those saying Mr. Ben-Gvir’s inclusion in the government is unacceptable were untroubled by the departing government, which included Ra’am, a party affiliated with Israel’s Islamic Movement, which was founded by a convicted terrorist; or the far-left Meretz, with roots in an actual Stalinist party; or by Prime Minister Yair Lapid’s apparent willingness to accept support from Hadash, a still-Communist party whose members of the Knesset recently justified terrorism against Israeli civilians.

Another theme in the dire forecasts for Israeli democracy are legal-system reforms that the new government may pursue. The measures would actually reinforce democracy and introduce checks and balances to a political system in which the Supreme Court has far more power than its American counterpart.

Like the U.S. Supreme Court, Israel’s strikes down laws as unconstitutional—even though Israel doesn’t have a written constitution. The court has, without statutory authority, taken upon itself the power to strike down any law or government action as “unreasonable”—that is, anything the justices don’t think is a good idea. The justices—they currently number 15—decide what laws to bestow “constitutional” status on. They also dominate the committee that appoints new justices as well as lower-court judges. Candidates don’t undergo confirmation hearings before the Knesset.

The legal reforms being discussed would weaken the ability of sitting justices to pick their successors. The reforms would allow the Knesset, in some cases, to override Supreme Court decisions based on interpretations of Knesset legislation—much as the Canadian Parliament can do. Such a measure would be a far less radical check on the court’s power than the court-packing U.S. Democrats have entertained as a way of reining in the judiciary.

For years, Israeli prosecutors have pursued Mr. Netanyahu for the crime of “breach of trust.” Some in the incoming government seek to do away with this offense because no one knows what exactly it prohibits. The U.S. Supreme Court, in Skilling v. U.S. (2010), struck down as unconstitutionally vague a similar statute about denying “honest services.”

The potential legal reforms don’t undermine the values Israel shares with the U.S. Instead, they would bring Israel closer to the American model.

Jerusalem publishes zoning for new US embassy in Jerusalem

The Jerusalem Municipality on Tuesday published the zoning description for a new US Embassy complex in the capital city.

The embassy will be on Derech Hebron between Hanoch Albek Street and Daniel Yanovsky Street, an area known by its British Mandate-era name, “Camp Allenby.”

The complex will include an embassy, offices, residences, parking and security structures. The buildings can be no more than 10 stories high, and the wall surrounding the area will be 3.5 meters high.

Time to start planning the move
Members of the public will have 60 days to submit their opposition to the plan to the municipality.

“After almost four years of hard work with the American Embassy in Jerusalem, we are pleased that the zoning plans were published this morning for the new Allenby complex,” Jerusalem Deputy Mayor Fleur Hassan-Nahoum said Tuesday.

“The US Embassy in such a central part of the city will upgrade the urban landscape of the neighborhood and connect it to all areas of the capital through the [Jerusalem] Light Rail network that will stop almost at its doors,” she said. “We hope that more countries will follow and move their embassies to our capital, Jerusalem.”

The US Embassy moved to Jerusalem in 2018, a few months after President Donald Trump recognized Israel’s capital.

11/02 Links Pt1: Netanyahu’s bloc appears primed for victory with nearly 86% of votes counted; Biden shouldn’t try to ‘save’ Israeli democracy from election victors

From Ian:

President Isaac Herzog: Honor the Election Results – Regardless of the Outcome

Election day for the 25th Knesset has arrived, and the fifth election campaign in less than four years is coming to an end. Although the election repetitiveness is likely to lead to despair among some Israelis, we must all remember: exercising our right to vote is most prominent expression of democracy in its simplest and most necessary sense – and we must not give up our right to be part of a process in which Israel's sovereignty is realized before our eyes.

I call on the entire Israeli public, from all communities, sectors, beliefs, and ways of life – to go out and vote and exercise your ability to influence our lives here.

Just as it is important that we all show up at the ballot boxes and choose the faction that reflects our views, it is important that we, the country's citizens, show up and stand behind the democratic process as well. Each and every one of us, from all walks of Israeli society, must assist - and not harm, God forbid – the optimal implementation of this process, in all its stages, and those who carry it out. Of course, it is no less important to honor the results of the election – whatever they will be. It is a fundamental obligation for us as a civilized society, the kind that not only creates common ground for us but also prevents chaos and anarchy.

Sadly, the months of the election campaign led to a disturbing increase in the extent of physical and verbal violence – in the field and on social media. Now is precisely the time to alter course, take a deep breath and adopt moderation, responsibility, and respect.

We must not forget, even for a moment: those who think differently from us are not enemies. Those who support a party that represents views and opinions we disagree with is not a traitor or fifth columnist. True, disagreements are and will always be an integral part of the democratic landscape. Still, we must ensure that they are conducted in a respectable manner and give room to others and their opinions.

Johnathan Tobin: Biden shouldn’t try to ‘save’ Israeli democracy from election victors

The votes in Israel’s latest Knesset election are still being counted, but the exit polls confirmed the worst fears of the Biden administration. While Israel isn’t getting the same kind of obsessive attention it has received at times in the past, there’s no question that President Joe Biden and his foreign-policy team have strong opinions about who should be running the Jewish state that are echoed by most Democrats and the liberal mainstream media.

They liked interim Prime Minister Yair Lapid and feared the possible return to power of Benjamin “Bibi” Netanyahu.

The prospect of not only a victory for Netanyahu and his Likud Party, but the formation of a government with a prominent role for the Religious Zionist Party and one of its controversial leaders, Itamar Ben Gvir, is enough to set the hair of Democrats and the foreign-policy establishment on fire.

Ben Gvir was a supporter of the late Rabbi Meir Kahane’s in his youth and has a well-earned reputation as a right-wing provocateur who often clashed with the police. The attorney/activist moderated his views somewhat however, as he became more politically viable. But he is still treated by both Israeli and American liberals as anathema and a mortal threat to democracy.

That sets up a situation where the temptation for Washington to try to influence the coalition negotiations that will follow the counting of the votes may prove irresistible.

It wouldn’t be the first time American administrations had tried to play that game. Presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama both sought to defeat Netanyahu and then aid his opponents in their quest to thwart his efforts to form governments. But this time, the motivation is slightly different.

In the past, those attempts to topple Netanyahu-led governments were primarily part of a campaign to promote the peace process with the Palestinians. Now, the main focus of American intervention—which may well be seconded by many leading American-Jewish groups—will be an effort to prevent the Religious Zionists and Ben Gvir from being part of a governing coalition.

The same group of Democratic foreign-policy hacks have largely staffed the Clinton, Obama and now Biden administrations. They all refuse to acknowledge the reality that Palestinian nationalism is inextricably tied to century-old Arab war on Zionism. That renders them incapable of accepting the legitimacy of a Jewish state no matter where its borders might be drawn.

Israel Elections 2022: Netanyahu’s bloc appears primed for victory with nearly 86% of votes counted

With more than 4.1 million votes officially counted, or 87.6% of the total ballots cast in Israel’s elections on Tuesday, opposition leader Benjamin Netanyahu’s right-religious bloc appears primed for a victory.

According to Central Elections Committee (CEC) figures released on Wednesday, Netanyahu’s bloc will pick up 65 seats, though this number and the prospective electoral map could still change if the far-left Meretz and anti-Zionist Arab Balad parties enter the Knesset.

Both parties are currently sitting below the minimum 3.25% electoral threshold to enter the next parliament, although the CEC still needs to count some 500,000 “double envelope” ballots. These are essentially absentee ballots, cast primarily by diplomats, soldiers and prisoners outside of assigned polling stations, which are determined automatically in the voter registry based on one’s place of residence.

As things stand, Netanyahu’s Likud Party was projected to receive 32 seats, with his likely coalition partners the Religious Zionist Party, Shas and United Torah Judaism receiving 14, 11 and eight mandates, respectively.

Prime Minister Yair Lapid’s Yesh Atid was predicted to garner 24 seats, followed by Defense Minister Benny Gantz’s National Unity at 12. Yisrael Beytenu, the Islamist Ra’am and the predominantly Arab Hadash-Ta’al were all sitting at five seats. The Labor Party would take four seats.

10/25 Links Pt1: UN's Pillay Commission is "objective, impartial and credible like the Spanish Inquisition; Fatah boasts about 7,200 terror attacks against Israel, criticizes Hamas for doing nothing

From Ian:

Herzog to present Biden with evidence Iranian drones being used in Ukraine

President Isaac Herzog is expected to present US President Joe Biden with evidence indicating that Iranian UAVs are being used against Ukrainian civilians as part of Russia's war in Ukraine.

Herzog arrived in Washington Tuesday morning, ahead of the meeting with Biden.

According to Herzog’s office, through a visual analysis, the Israeli defense establishment “has established that there are UAV fragments in Ukraine that are identical to those developed in Iran.”

“President Herzog will present US Government officials with images of Shahed-136 exploding UAVs prepared for a launch in a military exercise in Iran in December 2021. Another photo shows the same type of drone downed during the fighting in Ukraine,” Herzog’s office said.

“Despite Iranian denials and attempts to obscure their Iranian origins by adding Russian stamps, the photos show that the drone stabilizers are identical in their structure, dimensions, and numbering,” the statement reads.

“Yet again, Iran has proven that it cannot be trusted and wherever there is killing, destruction, and hatred—it’s there,” President Herzog said. “Iranian weapons play a key role in destabilizing our world, and the international community must learn its lessons, now and in the future.”

He went on to say that the world must speak with Iran in the same language: “a tough, united, and uncompromising language. As we are repeatedly discovering, for every hesitation about Iran—there is a price. In recent months, the Iranian regime has shown the world its true colors, which Israel has known for years. Nobody can ignore that the Iranian regime uses violence against its own citizens and is brutally suppressing the hijab protests with blatant human rights violations.”

UN's Pillay Commission is "objective, impartial and credible like the Spanish Inquisition

UN Watch's Hillel Neuer interviewed on ILTV, October 23, 2022.

The UN's Commission of Inquiry that was supposed to examine Israel and the Palestinians issued its first report to the General Assembly, and it only condemns Israel.

"This UN's Pillay Commission of Inquiry is objective, impartial, and credible like the Spanish Inquisition," said Neuer.

"The entire report only targets Israel. There is no mention of Hamas, the Islamic Jihad, the Lion's Den, pick your Palestinian terrorist group, or pick the Islamic Republic of Iran, which is funding and financing and arming these groups, no mention whatsoever."

Note: the UN has never organized a “media seminar” on human rights in Iran, Russia, China, Syria, Cuba, Venezuela, Zimbabwe, or Nicaragua. It’s more convenient for them to just keep scapegoating the same country. https://t.co/NosbcjS8nQ
— Hillel Neuer (@HillelNeuer) October 25, 2022

10/14 Links Pt2: Phillips: Hysteria greets British PM's embassy move proposal; Amnesty UK refuses to sack official who likened Israel’s Gaza policies to the Shoah

From Ian:

Melanie Phillips: Hysteria greets British PM's embassy move proposal

Few expect that the British embassy will actually be moved. Indeed, given the chaos that has engulfed Truss since she became prime minister, with the financial crisis and collapse in electoral support sparked by her scorched-earth economic policies currently threatening to bring her down before she has her feet properly under the Downing Street table, moving the embassy would hardly seem to be a priority.

If it were to happen, however, it would not only be an enormous boost to Israel. It would also represent a dramatic change in British policy.

Unlike the US, where despite various presidents' relative coolness towards Israel the Christian heartlands remain solidly supportive, Britain's attitude towards the Jewish state has always been at best ambiguous and at worst – as in Mandatory Palestine – actively hostile.

Moving the embassy would not only start to reset Britain's shameful attitude towards Israel. It would also advance the cause of peace.

The only reason this century-old conflict continues is that the Palestinian Arabs have repudiated the two-state solution. They have refused repeated offers of a state of their own, because their goal is not a Palestinian state but the eradication of the Israeli one.

Towards this infernal goal, their principal weapon has been the refusal by Britain and other western countries to recognize the Palestinians' real agenda, providing them instead with funding, training and diplomatic recognition.

In other words, Britain and the rest of the west have incentivized, rewarded and perpetuated the war against Israel by going along with the morally bankrupt proposition that the Palestinian Arabs are entitled to a state of their own, even though their actual purpose is to use that state as a means to destroy Israel.

By moving the embassy, Truss – who describes herself as a "huge Zionist" – would be signaling an end to the shameful British capitulation to the Palestinians' lies and blackmail.

That is precisely why there's been such a reaction. While the average British citizen doesn't have an opinion about Israel one way or the other, Britain's elites loathe Israel on a scale that just doesn't exist in America.

The proposal to move the British embassy has lifted a stone, and we can all see what has crawled out from underneath.

Amnesty UK refuses to sack official who likened Israel’s Gaza policies to the Shoah

Amnesty International UK is defying calls to sack a senior official who shared a post comparing Israel to Nazi Germany and likened the Jewish state’s treatment of Palestinians to the Holocaust.

Garry Ettle, who represents the human rights charity as “country coordinator for Israel and Occupied Palestinian territories”, retweeted a message asking how video footage showing Israeli youths shouting at a Palestinian woman was “any different from Nazi Germany”.

The activist called Israel’s policies towards Gaza a “slow holocaust” in a Facebook message posted on 27 January 2020.

He also condemned US band Black Eyed Peas for playing a gig in “apartheid Israel” in another social media post last year.

Mr Ettle’s hardline views, which were revealed by online investigations group GnasherJew, have led to calls for Amnesty International UK to sack him.

Tory peer Lord Leigh of Hurley, an executive board member of the Conservative Friends of Israel, told the JC he thought Mr Ettle should be dismissed, adding: “Amnesty International UK has a very worrying record and this is the moment for decisive action to be taken by them.”

And a spokesperson for advocacy group Campaign Against Antisemitism said: “Only at Amnesty and like-minded organisations could someone who allegedly compares Israel to Nazis describe himself as a ‘human-rights activist’.

“Such comparisons are a breach of the universally accepted International Definition of Antisemitism. We would call on Amnesty to investigate and dissociate itself from this individual, but the organisation’s record on antisemitism gives little reason to think that it holds the views of the Jewish community in anything but contempt.”

Both the left and the right have turned on the Jews

Conservatives claim to abhor anti-Semitism, and yet foolishly believe they can ride the coattails of non-conservative loose cannons like Kanye West and greedily feed off the cultural scraps that fall to the ground; all while trampling on the supposed principles that were their “hills to die on” in their battles with the opposing side.

Kanye West, who in a matter of days argued that Jared Kushner sought peace in the Middle East to make money, repeatedly promoted the radical Black Hebrew Israelite conspiracy theory that American blacks are the “real Jews,” implied that Jews created cancel culture and announced that he would be going “death con 3” on “Jewish people,” has shown no signs of apologizing.

And yet, days later, conservatives celebrated Kanye West—an open and unapologetic anti-Semite—on the red carpet, labeling his very presence iconic.

A line has been crossed.

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez spoke with Jeremy Corbyn and said veiled anti-Semitic things in the past, and conservative media—myself included—never let it go. And quite rightly so.

Kanye West, who has far more cultural influence than Ocasio-Cortez, pushed multiple explicit anti-Semitic tropes, and what was the result?

Many high-profile conservatives shrugged and moved on that same day. Some didn’t even shrug at all.

Now, many have responded to my vocal criticism of this appalling conduct with “whataboutism,” declaring that the leftist media ignores anti-Semitism all the time.

Yes, they do. So what?

I was under the impression that we were meant to be the principled ones. If that is true, where on earth are our principles?

I do understand the attitude of wanting to bring culturally-powerful people into our tent based on their supposedly aligned views on single-issue topics. (Let’s leave aside for now the fact that Kanye West’s “pro-life” views are based on an anti-Semitic conspiracy theory.) However, if there are no entry requirements to the ideological tent, if admission numbers are the only metric of value, what does that tent even represent?

Until our movement is willing to look in the mirror and stick to their supposed principles, the Jewish people cast out from this tent will wonder whether any of this is worth fighting for.

Yet again, Jews are alone.

10/06 Links Pt1: The Palestinian Authority cannot meet the most basic requirement for statehood; Lapid rejects Hashemite Kingdom of Palestine solution

From Ian:

The Palestinian Authority cannot meet the most basic requirement for statehood

The supreme test for a stable, sustainable and legitimate state is a monopoly on the use of force within the territories it controls. In the case of the P.A., this territory is currently composed of Areas A and B of Judea and Samaria—constituting around 40% of the area. The P.A. does not have the capability or willingness to confront the armed factions in these areas, never mind an expanded area provided for a Palestinian state. Moreover, the P.A. does not control an inch of the Gaza Strip, which is under the control of the terrorist entity Hamas, which sometimes appears to hate the P.A. and its chief Mahmoud Abbas even more than the Jews.

According to Melanne Civic and Michael Miklaucic in their book Monopoly of Force, “While no state has an absolute monopoly of force, to be accountable for actions taken within its borders, a state must have at least a preponderance of force; it must be able to prevent hostile acts toward other states. This is a minimum assumption of effective sovereignty.” The belief that the P.A. would be capable of this minimal level of sovereignty is wishful thinking.

The current unrest in Judea and Samaria is a perfect example of the P.A.’s ineptitude. The cities of Jenin and Nablus in Area A and B are lawless spaces controlled by a toxic mixture of armed elements of Abbas’ Fatah Party, Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad, among others. If Israel were not doing the P.A.’s dirty work, these groups would not only attack citizens of the Jewish state but, within a short time, overthrow the P.A. itself.

According to Efraim Inbar, the president of the Jerusalem Institute for Strategy and Security, “To a significant extent, the P.A. is a failed state, defined by the lack of a monopoly on the use of force. … Abbas shied away from confronting the armed gangs and failed to centralize the security services. Indeed, the P.A. lost control of Gaza to Hamas and has continuous difficulties dismantling militias in the territory under its formal control.”

Ordinary Palestinian citizens are responding to this by arming themselves—a logical decision under the circumstances. As former U.S. Secretary of Defense James Mattis said, “We need to recognize that in an imperfect world, we cannot blame a man for wanting to maintain his arms for the protection of his family, land and community when all around him is chaos, lawlessness and corruption, with little or no opportunity.” This is the environment created by an impotent P.A. The vacuum is being filled by terrorists, thugs and Islamist fanatics.

The willful delusion that the P.A. would have a monopoly of force in any proposed state would be laughable if it were not so dangerous. Indeed, the most likely outcome of the creation of a Palestinian state is a Hamas coup. One can support the two-state solution, but refusing to acknowledge that there is no entity capable of a monopoly of force in a Palestinian state—except perhaps for Hamas—is a danger to Israel’s existence and undermines American interests, which depend on a stable Israel. For the foreseeable future, the only realistic option is the status quo.

Jordan Is the Reason There Is No Palestinian State and Minorities Are Threatened

Clearly, the Jordanians have a poor record when it comes to safeguarding the rights of non-Muslims. Thus, it is quite hypocritical for the current Jordanian monarch to criticize Israel’s policies on religious freedom, especially since the Jewish state lifted the aforementioned discriminatory laws imposed on non-Muslim religious minorities once it assumed control over the West Bank and reunified Jerusalem.

Unfortunately, King Abdullah II’s hypocrisy is not limited to the matter of protecting religious freedom. The Hashemite ruler also used his speech at the General Assembly to call for a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, saying that the Palestinians “cannot be denied the right to self-determination.” But who has been denying the Palestinians their right to self-determination? Not Israel, whose leaders have offered the Palestinians statehood on several occasions, only to be turned down and met with terrorist violence at the urging of the Palestinian leadership. In fact, if anyone has been standing in the way of the Palestinians’ right to self-determination, it is King Abdullah II’s Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan.

The Palestinians could have had a country of their own as far back as 1921, when the British literally handed the territory of their Mandate of Palestine east of the Jordan River to King Abdullah II’s Hashemite clan, instead of giving it to the Palestinian Arab population for which it was originally intended. Then, during the 1948 war, the Jordanians captured what they labeled the West Bank, including eastern Jerusalem and all its holy places. But did they end up giving this territory to the Palestinians so that they would have a country of their own? Nope. Instead, the Jordanians annexed the newly-conquered territory — an annexation that was not even recognized by the other Arab states.

The bottom line is that King Abdullah II and his Hashemite clan have stood in the way of Palestinian statehood, not Israel. The king’s diatribe about a two-state solution is as hypocritical as his argument that the Jewish state threatens the rights of Christians. Besides, without Israeli support, the Jordanian monarch would probably not have his kingdom, so I think it’s time he stopped biting the hand that feeds him.

David Singer: Lapid rejects Hashemite Kingdom of Palestine solution

The emergence of the Saudi Solution offered these reticent politicians a real choice – yet not one of them has had the intestinal fortitude finally – if belatedly and unrealistically – displayed by Lapid.

The Saudi Solution – in distinct contrast to the United Nations Solution – offers Israel the following concessions before negotiations are even commenced on implementing the proposal:
· -Jerusalem will be the capital of Israel only
· - No new State will be created between Israel and Jordan
· - The right of return by Palestinian Arabs to Israel will be abandoned
· -Jewish sovereignty in part of Judea and Samaria ('West Bank') will be recognised for the first time in 3000 years
· -Saudi Peace proposals made in 1981 and 2002 that were unacceptable to Israel will be superseded.

The universal silence by Israeli politicians on the Saudi Solution since its publication almost four months ago is shameful.

One cannot expect every Israeli politician to embrace the Saudi Solution, but then they should publicly state their opposition.

But is there not one Israeli politician – Jew or Arab – other than Lapid - prepared to express his own opinion on conducting negotiations to determine if agreement can be reached on the Saudi Solutions’ groundbreaking proposals?

In particular why have the leaders of sixteen of the major Israeli political parties contesting the elections – Netanyahu, Gantz, Sa’ar, Smotrich, Ben-Gvir, Deri, Litzman, Gafni, Shehadeh,Odeh, Tibi, Michaeli, Galon, Abbas, Shaked, Liberman and Hendel - refused to comment on the Saudi Solution since its publication?

Hopefully these leaders - like Lapid – will break their silence on the Saudi Solution well before November 1.

Leaders lead from the front – not cower and huddle silently together behind the voters whose votes they seek.

Saudi Arabia arrests pilgrim trying to honor Queen Elizabeth - this might be why

From Naharnet:

Saudi police arrested a Yemeni man this week after he advertised on social media his pilgrimage to Mecca, where he paid tribute to the memory of Queen Elizabeth II.

The pilgrim, who was not identified by name, had posted footage earlier this week that showed him holding a banner honoring the late queen from inside the courtyard of Mecca's Grand Mosque.

The clip quickly spread online, sparking outrage among devout Muslims and leading to the man's arrest on Monday for "violating the regulations and instructions" of the holy site. Security forces referred him to the public prosecutor to face charges.

"Umrah for the soul of Queen Elizabeth II, may Allah grant her peace in heaven and accept her among the righteous," the banner read in English and Arabic.

It turns out that at least some Muslim authorities say it is against Islamic law to pray for the soul of non-Muslims.

Palestinian site Raya asked the question last week as to whether Muslims can pray for mercy for the soul of Queen Elizabeth. It quotes an Islamic fatwa website saying that the clerics ruled "that mercy on the dead of infidels is not permissible, whether they are from The Jews and the Christians, or they were from others."

The same question was asked on Palestinian sites after Shireen Abu Akleh was killed, and the consensus was the same - she was a Christian and Muslims should not pray for her soul. There was a backlash, but not on the basis of Islamic law, rather for publicizing this ruling, which threatened to overshadow the public relations bonanza of her death.

A similar question was asked about whether Abu Akleh, and presumably the Queen, are damned to eternal hellfire for their non-Muslim beliefs. The answer, again, seemed to be in the affirmative, although I've seen sites that say otherwise.

(h/t Ibn Boutros)

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Saudi cleric causes controversy by ruling one should be nice to Jews

A member of the Saudi Council of Senior Scholars and an advisor at the Saudi Royal Court, Sheikh Dr. Saad bin Nasser Al-Shathri, called on the Saudis to be kind to Jews who visit the Kingdom.

During a fatwa program on "Alif Alif" radio, a listener asked how a Muslim should treat a Jew who visits the kingdom.

Al-Shathri responded that “not every Jew is an Israeli, and a Muslim must approach God by kindness in dealing with all people,” warning against “being deceived by malicious propaganda and rumours.”

The cleric pointed out that Mohammed had good relations with some Jews.

“A person must draw closer to Allah by showing kindness to all people, of whatever religion they are,” he added.

"People must abide by these instructions and these etiquettes that were brought by Islamic Sharia, with regard to good logic and beautiful speech.. A kind word is charity, as the Holy Prophet said.”

He added the need to "provide assistance to others, whatever their religion, so that the Muslim can be a good model, and provide correct propaganda to introduce Islam."

Although it appears that some Jews have managed to visit Saudi Arabia for business over the years, they have kept a low profile. Lately that has been changing, as Israelis have been allowed into the Kingdom as well under special circumstances.

Even though the answer seems to say at the end that it is allowed to treat Jews well in order to ultimately attract them to Islam, the answer itself is pretty good.

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Major Saudi cleric calls for genocide against Jews - and gains lots of support

Last week, one of the preachers at the Great Mosque in Mecca, Imam Saleh Bin Al-Humeid, gave an antisemitic sermon, calling for genocide of all Jews.

He said, "Oh Allah, bring annihilation upon the plundering and occupying Jews, for they are no match for You. Oh Allah, bring down upon them Your punishment, from which criminals cannot escape. Oh Allah, we make You our shield against them, and take refuge with You against their evil."

These sermons are televised and approved by the Saudi kingdom.

Popular Israeli expert on the Arab world Edy Cohen launched a one man campaign against Humeid, demanding that he be fired and that the Saudi government apologize for this clear incitement against world Jewry.

His campaign has been noticed and widely publicized in the Arab world - and the backlash has resulted in many major Islamic figures defending Humeid.

The Grand Mufti of the Sultanate of Oman, Ahmed bin Hamad Al Khalili, expressed his solidarity with Humeid on Thursday, saying his Jew-hatred "warmed our hearts."

The head of the Palestine Scholars Association, Nassim Yassin, used similar language, saying "Sheikh bin Hamid warmed our hearts with his support for our cause and our Palestinian people," complaining about Cohen's campaign as "a despicable arrogance, and a clear and unjust injustice against the virtuous Sheikh and our Palestinian cause."

There was a popular hashtag in some Arab countries on Wednesday saying "We are all Sheikh Bin-Humeid."

Notice that, as usual, antisemitism is whitewashed as "support for Palestinians."

This explicit antisemitism has been roundly ignored in international media, but it is not like they aren't aware of it. CNN Arabic has written at least two articles about this controversy so far. As far as I can tell, this is the first time it is being discussed in English, a full week after the offensive sermon.

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Yemen's Council of Ministers condemns Jews. Because that's what one does, apparently.

From Yemen's Saba news site:

The Council of Ministers approves its plan for the [Islamic] year 1444 AH and renews its condemnation of the desecration of the Holy Land by Jews

But it turns out they are really condemning Saudi Arabia, and Jews are an excuse:

The Council of Ministers renewed its condemnation of the Zionist Jews’ violation and desecration of sacred lands and feelings in light of the Saudi regime’s complicity and neglect of sacred things, as part of its continuous approach of neglecting Palestine and Al-Aqsa Mosque, and the founder’s approval to give it to the Jews, as stated in the historical document that was widely circulated in various media.

I haven't seen this but there must have been some rumor in Yemeni media that Saudi Arabia agreed that Israel should control Al Aqsa.

He pointed out that compromising Islamic sanctities confirms that the Saudi regime is dishonest in managing the holy sites in Makkah and Madinah.. He called on the entire Islamic nation to confront the practices of normalization with the Jews, and allow them to enter the holy lands and sites in Makkah and Madinah, and to roam in such a way that provokes feelings of Muslims.

The Council pointed out that this condemned act by all the sons of the Islamic nation confirms the existence of an aggressive scheme targeting religious sanctities and feelings in Mecca and Medina.

This is about the Israeli reporter who sneaked into Mecca. The consporacy-theory addicted Yemenis are convinced that it was done in collusio with the evilSudis, just to upset Muslims.

It doesn't have to make sense.

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07/20 Links Pt1: Caroline Glick: The strategic fallout of Biden’s failure; When Iran Says ‘Death to Israel,’ It Means It; Biden Administration Funds Anti-Israel Curricula, Hate Messages

From Ian:

Caroline Glick: The strategic fallout of Biden’s failure

States that support Palestinian-centric diplomacy include Jordan and Qatar, and of course also the Palestinian Authority also supports it. All of these are harsh opponents of the Abraham Accords. Indeed, they condemned them. Jordan does not view Iran as a threat. Hamas and to a degree the Palestinian Authority view Iran as a sponsor and ally. And Qatar is Iran’s close ally and partner.

All the same, the Biden administration’s policy is to bring the two sides together. The first sign of this came with Secretary of State Anthony Blinken’s visit to Israel and the Palestinian Authority in March. At the time, Blinken tried to force the foreign ministers of the Abraham Accord nations to bring the Palestinians into their deliberations. He failed.

But rather than walk away, the administration has doubled down. They have sought to bring Iranian allies and proxies Qatar and Iraq, as well as Jordan, into the regional air defense alliance that the United States seeks to create through CENTCOM. But bringing Qatar and Iraq into the alliance means emptying the alliance of all meaning. Similarly, Biden seeks to bring Jordan and the P.A., which oppose the Abraham Accords, into the summits of Abraham Accord partners, a move that would, again, gut the accords and reduce them to strategic incoherence, at best.

Immediately after Biden left Jeddah empty-handed, Egypt and the UAE beat a path to Tehran’s door looking to reopen their embassies and formally reinstate relations with a state pledged to their destruction. With the U.S. effectively batting for Iran’s team, they need to explore their options.

All of this, of course, is devastating for Israel, on every level. The move Israel has to make is fairly obvious. Israel needs to pander to the Biden administration just as emptily as Biden and his hostile advisers pander to Israel. And then they need to pursue policies that actually defend Israel’s interests.

Unfortunately, our caretaker leaders, Prime Minister Yair Lapid and Defense Minister Benny Gantz, are doing no such thing.

For reasons that have nothing to do with strategic rationality or reality, both men are apparently operating under the impression that Israel is required to advance policies towards the Palestinians and Iran that are devastating to Israel’s existential security interests.

Israel has apparently no plan to attack Iran’s nuclear installations, despite the fact that we are at crunch time. We have no policy to defend or preserve the Abraham Accords. Indeed, both Gantz and Lapid seem to have no clear understanding of the accords’ purpose or rationale. It’s hard to know whether their positions are based on ideological blindness or simple incompetence. Both men have demonstrated both, and in similar ways.

But all the same, Biden’s cataclysmically failed visit, which was followed immediately by Russian President Vladimir Putin’s triumphant visit to Tehran on Monday, means that Israel has no time for its leaders to learn remedial statecraft.

Biden’s pandering was irritating and insulting. But it’s the devastating substance of his policies that is truly alarming. Israel has to stand up for itself now, because nothing it says, no pandering on its part, will change America’s trajectory.

Gil Troy: Biden actually did a good job in Israel

Admittedly, I would have preferred to see unanimity between Israel and Biden. I toast Biden’s growing awareness regarding the dangers of Iran’s sick quest for nukes and its evil Revolutionary Guards, yet I cringed when Biden’s staff removed Israel’s flag from his limousine before entering east Jerusalem. (As a presidential historian, I deem this an unnecessary error: the limousine should fly only two flags everywhere – America’s and the president’s seal.)

Nevertheless, these minor frictions reinforced the broader message of a friendship resilient enough to absorb policy differences.

HERE IS where Biden’s age is a factor – for the good. Born in 1942 to pious, patriotic Catholics, Biden grew up understanding that, as he said, “the ancient roots of the Jewish people [in Israel] date back to biblical times,” and the once homeless Jews deserve a national home. Biden’s sympathy for Zionism contrasts with the Israel-bashers, both Jewish and non-Jewish, who echo today’s trendy vocabulary of delegitimization, sloppily and cruelly applying a critique of Western imperialism to Jews’ unique story.

Biden’s pro-Zionism contrasts with woke extremists like the Democratic member of Congress, Cori Bush, who on Saturday attended a fundraiser organized by Neveen Ayesh. The government relations coordinator for the St. Louis chapter of American Muslims for Palestine, Ayesh has tweeted out filth saying “I tried befriending a Jew once. Worst idea ever” and “I want to set Israel on fire with my own hands & watch it burn to ashes along with every Israeli in it.”

But Biden’s mature example also resists the silliness of Peace Now, which hung a huge poster in Tel Aviv proclaiming – in Hebrew – “welcome to the two states we love the most.” As the election campaign intensifies, and people wonder why Israel’s Left lacks credibility, remember that sign.

Beyond the obvious facts that Biden doesn’t speak Hebrew and the “state” of Palestine doesn’t exist, the entities currently representing Palestinians are corrupt, terrorist-addicted, dictatorships, fueled on anti-Jew hatred, abusing their own people in the West Bank and Gaza, and particularly hostile to Zionists – as well as fellow Palestinians advancing American liberal-democratic ideals. Ignoring those realities, falsely equating your own democratic country with its authoritarian enemies, confuses peacemaking with breast-beating.

Pit stop
Admittedly, a cynical British friend of mine was correct. Biden’s Israel visit was a most elaborate rest stop on the way to the Saudi Arabian “petrol station.” Still, Biden done good. He showed Democrats at home – and peaceniks in Israel – how to recognize the eternal ideals that make Israel Israel and link Americans and Israelis in our unique and mutually beneficial bond. For that, we should say, “Toda raba! Thank you, Mr. President.”

Biden Administration Funds Anti-Israel Curricula, Hate Messages

US taxpayer money, thanks to the Biden administration, is now once again going directly to an international agency that promotes messages of hate against Israel and denies its right to exist.

The claim that the UNRWA services contribute to maintaining regional stability is not only false, but, sadly, ridiculous.

On the contrary, most of the refugee camps have since become hotbeds for extremist and terrorist groups and individuals, especially in the West Bank, Gaza Strip, Lebanon and Syria.

A study published earlier in early July.... found that children attending UNRWA schools are exposed to textbooks that include references to violence, martyrdom, overt antisemitism, jihad (holy war), rejection of the possibility of peace with Israel, and the complete omission of any historical Jewish presence in the region.

"[W]e found material that does not adhere to international standards and that encourages violence, jihad and martyrdom, antisemitism, hate, and intolerance...." — IMPACT-se study, July 2022.

Instead of pressuring UNRWA to change its policies and stop the anti-Israel incitement in its schools, the Biden administration has decided to reward the agency for encouraging hate, violence, martyrdom and the delegitimization and demonization of Israel and Jews.

The Biden administration, in short, has just sent a message to the Palestinians and all the Israel-haters that it supports their efforts and shares their dream of obliterating Israel.

Those who fund school textbooks that glorify terrorists and deny Israel's right to exist are complicit in the global jihad against Israel.

Rabbi Jacob Herzog, the self-proclaimed "chief rabbi of Saudi Arabia," posted a photo of himself outside an ancient Muslim graveyard called the "Martyrs of Uhud" cemetery in Medina. He tweeted in Arabic:

I stand to pray for mercy for the soul of Mukhareq Ibn al-Nadir, the Jewish rabbi who stood with the Messenger Muhammad and defended him, fought and was martyred in the Battle of Uhud, and made his money an endowment. #Madinah

Mohammed had famously expelled all Jews from Medina when he defeated the three Jewish groups Bani Qaynuqa’, An-Nadir, and Qurayza. One of the angry comments about Rabbi Herzog's photo was, "The Prophet expelled the Jews from Medina, and Muhammad bin Salman, the crown prince, brought them back."

Another person worried, in response to the tweet, “Is this a justification for your settlement of a land and a region in Saudi Arabia with the excuse that it was the endowment of your Jewish ancestor?"

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Saudis normalizing the idea of normalization

Many Islamists criticized Saudi Arabia for appointing Muhammad bin Abdul-Karim al-Issa to perform the sermon and prayer on the Day of Arafa at the Namirah Mosque in Mecca for Hajj.

Al-Issa had visited Auschwitz, met with rabbis, visited Yeshiva University in New York and in general has been outspoken in pushing for coexistence with other religions.

This was a significant, public move that showed that the Saudi leadership is liberalizing and encouraging its people to no longer consider Israel as an enemy.

Saudi Arabia's Basic Law says that the constitution itself is defined as"The Holy Qur'an and the Prophet's Sunnah (traditions)." Before normalization with Israel is possible, there needs to be rulings based on the Quran that would allow such a relationship.

MEMRI reports that this is already happening:

An unusual and recent article on the religious legitimacy of diplomatic relations with Israel, which may promote the rapprochement between Saudi Arabia and this country, appeared in the Saudi state daily Al-Jazirah on June 20, 2022. The article, titled "The Fiqh [Jurisprudence] regarding al-siyasa al-shar'iyya Shari'a-Based Policy and the State of Israel," is by Dr. Khalid bin Muhammad Al-Yousuf, a senior lecturer on international law at the Imam Muhammad bin Saud Islamic University in Riyadh and the secretary-general of the university's Supreme Council. He argues that, in the modern era, there has been a significant change in the perception of the state and in the rules of the game in international relations. According to the new rules, he says, Israel is an existing reality just like any other world country, and a member of the UN. Therefore, it must be treated according to the accepted norms of the international community. Al-Yousuf calls on Saudi clerics to reexamine the sphere of international relations and formulate a new religious perception of it, compatible with these new norms, which will enable the ruler of an Islamic state to employ independent judgement and form ties with Israel if he deems this to be in the interest of his country. He emphasizes that normalization with Israel will allow many Muslims to come and pray in Jerusalem and "rebuild it," which cannot be done without maintaining ties with Israel.

The article, as translated by MEMRI, starts off with a justification for how Saudi Arabia has already accepted Israel as a member of the international community as a first stage towards recognition:

First of all, what is Israel today?

In the contemporary international community, [Israel] is a sovereign state that has the character of a state according to the modern global perception. It is a member of the UN, and since it is recognized as a state, it operates in the contemporary international community vis-à-vis all the other states, just like any other country – whether in the framework of mutual legal recognition [between it and other states], or in practice, based on reality, according to the requirements of the contemporary circumstances.

Examples of the first [type of recognition] are, for example, official mutual visits by state leaders, the opening of embassies, direct trade, and the like. Examples of the second [kind of ties, based on the requirements of reality are the existence of] maritime zones and airspace; the use of shipping routes; indirect trade, for example by transferring goods through third parties, in free trade zones and through [individuals with] dual citizenship; meetings between official delegations at international forums, and encounters as part of various sports events. A state cannot be part of the international community without taking an active part in international forums…"

The Saudis have already been interacting with Israelis in the context of multilateral and international meetings. This article gives both that level of acceptance and the higher level of recognizing Israel an Islamic imprimatur, by showing precedent by Mohammed in the Quran in how he dealt with other nations.

The legal basis is the concept of "al-siyasa al-shar'iyya" which says that relationships with non-Muslims that benefit Muslims have a wider latitude as long as they do not explicitly violate shari'a law. The essay says that the ruler of a Muslim country can make decisions about what is best for the country based on politics as well as Islamic law.

It seems to me that this policy has been in place for decades anyway - after all, Saudi Arabia has diplomatic relations with scores of Christian countries, and in Islam there is no legal distinction between Jews and Christians. But since Israel has been the object of so much hate for so long, and that opprobrium was also ostensibly based on Islamic law, the Saudi leadership needs to explain how it can justify such a major change in policy towards Israel.

There is another interesting implication in this article. It seems to effectively accept international law as being more important than shari'a when it comes to international relations:

If we examine our current reality we will find that [the concept of] dar al-harb in its Islamic and jurisprudential sense is no longer implemented today. The fact that it is not implemented does not mean that the shari'a laws pertaining to it are abolished, but only that they are not applied to modern states because this term is not used in the modern international community. Modern states interact through contracts, charters, agreements and alliances. These can be collective, like the UN Charter, which is the founding document of the UN, [an organization] that encompasses all the world countries. According to this charter, states have rights and duties towards the UN, towards the international community and towards each other… Saudi Arabia was one of the first countries to sign the UN Charter, and it is therefore a founding member [of this organization]. King Faisal signed the charter as a founding member already on June 26, 1945 in a ceremony that took place in San Francisco.

...An in-depth examination of the reality in the modern international community reveals that a state, in addition to being a legal entity, may not violate modern international law… For example, it may not hijack planes, trains or ships in another country, and if it does so, it incurs international condemnation.

This could open the door for Saudi liberalization in many more areas than just relations with Israel.

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Iran upset when Muslims admit the Holocaust happened (update)

Iran's Ahl al-Bayt News Agency (ABNA), a Shiite news site whose views mimic that of Iran's leadership, reports that Saudi authorities designated Muhammad bin Abdul-Karim al-Issa, Secretary-General of the Muslim World League, to perform the sermon and prayer on the Day of Arafa at the Namirah Mosque in Mecca for Hajj this year.

This is upsetting to the Iranians.

Why?

It is noteworthy that Al-Issa visited the so-called "Jewish genocide camp" in Poland, "Auschwitz", in conjunction with the commemoration of the "Holocaust".

The “Israel in Arabic” account, affiliated with the Israeli enemy’s Foreign Ministry, had published a video clip of Al-Issa as he “leads a delegation, to pray in Auschwitz, in sympathy for the dead Jews. ”

The photo accompanying the article shows Al-Issa accepting a plaque from a Jew.

The word Israel or Zionist does not appear in this article. Iran's problem with al-Issa is that he showed sympathy for millions of dead Jews.

Remember that next time Iran and its useful idiot supporters claim that Iran isn't antisemitic, merely anti-Israel. It is pretty obvious that to Iran, there is no difference between the two.

UPDATE: It isn't only Iran. A fatwa against al-Issa has been re-circulated, calling him a Muslim apostate - because he once referred to Christians and Jews as "brothers." The fatwa, by an 87-year old Saudi scholar, says that Jews and Christians are infidels and enemies of Allah and it is sacrilegious to refer to them as "brothers."

Similarly, Al-Hassan bin Ali Al-Kettani , president of the League of Maghreb Scholars and a member of the League of Muslim Scholars has also denounced the appointment.

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Iran calls Israeli involvement in US Centcom a "threat"

As we've been reporting, the Trump decision weeks before his term ended to include Israel in Centcom has been paying dividends, as military cooperation between Israel and Arab states that it is not officially at peace with has been increasing dramatically. Israeli military leaders secretly met with their counterparts from Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Egypt and Jordan in March under the aegis of Centcom.

Iran has now officially responded to the news, and they seem unhappy.

The chief of Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces denounced the Zionist regime’s participation in the US Central Command’s military activities and war games as a source of threat to the region, which he said would definitely trigger a reaction from Iran.

[Monday,] Major General Mohammad Hossein Baqeri slammed the Zionist regime as the root cause of interventions and instability in the region.

The Israeli regime has hatched plots in order to establish contacts with regional countries and achieve its interventionist objectives, the top Iranian commander warned.

He also cautioned that the Zionist regime’s membership in the CENTCOM (US Central Command) and its move to deploy equipment and participate in the war games would present threats to the region, adding, “We do not tolerate such threats and will definitely react to them.”

Iran's usual response to things like this is to ask Hezbollah or Hamas to start something up that will force an Israeli reaction that would upset the Arab world. But the terror groups have their own political problems - neither the Lebanese nor the Gazans want another war that only ends up hurting them. Syria likewise doesn't have the appetite to start a war with Israel. Combined with its economic crisis, Iran's leverage over its terrorist allies is much more limited than it has been.

This is not to say that Iran cannot destabilize things in the region, but it has had its hands tied much more recently.

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WSJ: Israel met with Arabs including Qataris, Saudis on defending against Iranian threat

The Wall Street Journal reports:

The U.S. convened a secret meeting of top military officials from Israel and Arab countries in March to explore how they could coordinate against Iran’s growing missile and drone capabilities, according to officials from the U.S. and the region.

The previously undisclosed talks, which were held at Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt, marked the first time that such a range of ranking Israeli and Arab officers have met under U.S. military auspices to discuss how to defend against a common threat.

The meeting brought together the top military officers from Israel, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Egypt and Jordan and came as Israel and its neighbors are in the early stage of discussing potential military cooperation, the officials said.

The United Arab Emirates and Bahrain also sent officers to the meeting. The U.S. was represented by Gen. Frank McKenzie, then the head of the U.S. Central Command.

The talks were enabled by several changes, including common fears of Iran, improved political ties signaled by the Abraham Accords and the Trump administration’s decision in January 2021 to expand Central Command’s area of coverage to include Israel.

Another factor driving expanding military cooperation has been Arab countries’ desire for access to Israeli air defense technology and weapons at a time when the U.S. is shifting its military priorities toward countering China and Russia.

After initially distancing itself from the Abraham Accords, the Biden administration belatedly started to embrace them and now to expand them to include other Arab countries.

Recall that there was another meeting in March in Sharm el-Sheikh, between the leaders of Israel, Egypt and the UAE, on March 22.

The date of the military meeting is not known, but General McKenzie gave a hint about it in a media briefing from Centcom Headquarters in Tampa, Florida on March 16.

"Iran's ballistic missile threat has continued to advance and expand with greater ranges and accuracy," he said, adding that land attack cruise missiles and small unmanned aerial vehicles also are part of that threat.

Partner nation air defense systems in the region far outnumber those that the U.S. has there, he said. Air defense systems, including high-end ones like the Patriot system, are used by the Gulf States and others.

"The task in the theater is really how do you knit those together so that you create more than a simple sum of the component parts," he said.

"By doing so, you create a common operational picture, so everybody sees the same thing. Everybody gets early warnings; everybody can be prepared to react very quickly to a potential Iranian attack. That's where the future in this theater is," he said.

Iranian ballistic missile threats have provided some opportunities for the United States to advance regional cooperation in the area of air defense, he said.

"Centcom is focused on operationalizing the Abraham Accords as we brought Israel into our area of operations, and missile defense is one area of cooperation that all our partners understand," he said.

The focus, according to the now-retired general, was to facilitate communication between all regional states so everyone can share early warnings of Iranian attacks. This has the advantage, he hinted, of Israel being able to cooperate with Arab countries that it has not made peace with by not requiring any physical presence of Israelis in Arab countries or vice versa.

Such cooperation is still in very early stages, but the Trump decision to incorporate Israel into Centcom is paying off in closer military cooperation between all Arab states and Israel, via the US.

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Saudi Arabia now allowing Israeli businesspeople to enter the Kingdom - with their Israeli passports

The Abraham Accords continues to fuel levels of cooperation between Israel and the Arab world that could not have been dreamed of two years ago.

Today, Israel and the UAE signed a free trade agreement - the first between Israel and an Arab country.

But even more amazing is that Saudi Arabia is now inviting Israeli businesspeople to the Kingdom, using their Israeli passports - and deals are being signed:

"Globes" has learned that, for months, Saudi Arabia has been permitting Israeli businesspeople - mainly representatives and managers of Israeli technology companies invited by the Saudis - to enter its territory on Israeli passports with special entry visas. The change that has taken place in recent months is the lifting of the blanket ban that had been in place, and easing of the special visa issue process.

Dozens of businesspeople have taken advantage of this opportunity and visited Riyadh, the economic center of Saudi Arabia, and also other places like Neom - the city of the future being built not far from the Red Sea coast.

These visits have spawned quite a few deals, including two desert agriculture deals worth millions of dollars....

These projects have significance for the entire Middle East, as they also demonstrate to other countries in the region Israel’s ability to assist in areas especially important to countries suffering from food shortages.

Saudis have been doing clandestine deals with Israeli companies for years, but those deals have been signed in other countries.

The article also notes that the Saudis have soured on the Palestinian cause, and there was outrage among the people at photos of Palestinians stockpiling and throwing stones and fireworks from the Al Aqsa Mosque in April.

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