Elder Of Ziyon - Israel News

Wednesday, March 30, 2011

Package with white powder closes US consulate in Jerusalem

From AFP:

The United States consulate in Jerusalem said Wednesday that its consular annex would be closed the next day because of a mystery package that was discovered at the building.

Israel police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said a package containing an unidentified powder had been discovered by consular staff around midday local time.

"Police and officials of the environmental protection ministry examined the components, a white powder," he said, adding that the material had been taken away for specialist examination.

He did not know if the package was delivered by post or other means. "That's part of the investigation," he said.

The consular department, which handles passport and other matters for US citizens and visa applications for others, is housed in a new, purpose-built building in a quiet residential neighborhood of west Jerusalem.

New ElderOfZiyon.com landing page

As I mentioned recently, one of my extraordinarily generous readers liked my posters so much, he offered to pay for them to be placed in ads in a few newspapers this weekend - along with my blog URL.

After I put together the ad, I realized that anyone who goes to my ElderOfZiyon.com URL after reading the ad will be very confused - because it would redirect to the Blogger page, and this is just a blog, not an organized Israel advocacy page that people might expect.

Since the ads are running this weekend, I just created a very basic webpage that ElderOfZiyon.com points to, with links to a few of my "greatest hits" as well as the blog. This way, I hope that people typing in the URL won't get too confused when they come to my page.

I did not spend too much time on the new landing page, and I created it using a free webpage design service, but hopefully it will do its job. For those who have bookmarked by Blogger page, this is not an issue at all.

Hopefully, when I get the time, I'll make the ElderOfZiyon.com page more useful.

Pa’am shlishit, glida!

From JPost:

On a normal day, Shimshon Moshe – owner of the food stand Pitzutz Shel Kiosk, across from the Jerusalem International Convention Center (Binyenei Ha’uma) – talks to thousands of people. He acts as an informal information booth, directing tourists and native-born Israelis to the correct buses, and as an unofficial policeman, keeping his eye out for anything out of the ordinary.

Between selling cans of Coke and bags of Bisli, Moshe has spent much of the last two days pointing out the holes in his kiosk that were created when a duffel bag exploded just two feet away last Wednesday, killing one woman, UK national Mary Jean Gardner, and wounding 39.

Almost everyone who passes by stops to ask about the bombing, or about Moshe’s brother-in-law, David Amoyal, who was working in the kiosk at the time of the explosion and was wounded in the attack.

This isn’t the first time that Moshe’s kiosk has been a terrorist target. It was totally destroyed in a bombing on December 25, 1994.

Following the bombing, Moshe, who has owned the kiosk for more than 20 years, ironically renamed it Pitzutz Shel Kiosk (“A blast of a kiosk”).

After last week’s bombing, he is considering renaming the kiosk again, Moshe told The Jerusalem Post on Tuesday.

“I might name it, ‘Third Time, Ice Cream,’” [pa’am shlishit, glida] he said, laughing, referring to the popular Israeli expression used when something happens by chance twice in a row.

When people passing by hear this suggestion, they laugh as well. It’s the best way to react to this situation, explained Moshe.

This story should be translated into Arabic.

Because the terrorists need to know that the Jews aren't going anywhere.

(h/t CHA)

Some quick posters for today's BDS protests

I was asked to make some posters to counter some planned BDS flashmobs and other protests happening today ("Land Day.")

I just made some generic signs that can be used effectively at any anti-Israel protest. as always, click on it to get the larger size and then you can print them or send them to a copy shop:

Egypt's transitional constitution keeps references to Sharia

From DPA:

Egypt's military unveiled an interim constitution on Wednesday, in the wake of the ousting of president Hosny Mubarak, outlining the government's powers and replacing the country's 1971 constitution.

The declaration from Supreme Council of the Armed Forces asserts that Egypt is a democratic country and ensures freedom of religion and opinion, spokesperson Mamdouh Shahin said in a press conference.

Well, sort of.

In fact, Al Arabiya reports that the part of the constitution that has been most problematic - Article 2 - has remained intact:

(Article 2): Islam is the Religion of the State. Arabic is its official language, and the principal source of legislation is Islamic Jurisprudence (Sharia).

Coptic Christians in Egypt had objected to the part about Sharia. The Muslim Brotherhood was adamant it remain in place.

We see who won that battle.

Afternoon links

I am no expert on international law, but this op-ed in the JPost, if true, would have far-reaching implications for Israel's future. It shows a path that the PLO is using to gain international recognition in September.

Abbas Milani at TNR wonders why the world is silent about Iran's imprisonment of their leading dissidents.

Michael Oren asks - what if Gaddafi had gone nuclear?

The Forward had a good reaction by an Israeli music artist to Roger Waters' boycott. (h/t Daphne Anson via Israellycool)

Yaacov Lozowick wonders why the world is obsessed over the 61st conquest of Jerusalem.

I haven't been mentioning the Abu-Sisi case, mostly because there have been no official statements from Israel, but you should be aware of it.

What I'm eating this BIG (Buy Israeli Goods) day

I stopped off at a supermarket this morning to find Israeli foods to buy for today's Buy Israeli Goods day.

Here's some of what I found:

So I had Tnuva Garlic and Dill cheese spread on crackers for breakfast, I'll have Sabra Supremely Spicy Hummus forluch with some (Israeli-created) cherry tomatoes, and Bamba for a snack.

What Israeli products are you buying today?

Some anti-semitism in Google Maps

If you do a Google Maps search for the Great Synagogue in Brussels, and you mouse over the building, here is what you see:

The pop-up box, when expanded and translated, means this:

All political, economic and financial decisions in Belgium are taken here. For a decision to be taken, the Belgian Parliament (Wetstraat) has to seek prior approval from the Learned Elders of Zion cell based at the Great Synagogue of Brussels (Regentschapsstraat).

It's been there for nearly a year.

I complained to Google, we'll see if anything gets done.

(h/t Philosemitism blog)

Whatever happened to "car swarms"?

Remember "car swarms," the inevitable photos of huge crowds gathering around terrorist cars that Israel targeted in Gaza?

Compare them to this reaction from this morning's Israeli attack on an Islamic Jihad rocket cell, two men riding a motorcycle:

They don't seem to put as much of their heart into it anymore.

PIJ leader: "Palestine is land for all Muslims." Um, what about Christians?

An Islamic Jihad leader has condemned the Israeli airstrike that killed a member of his group this morning, in response to rocket fire.

One of the things he said is interesting:

Palestine is holy ground, a royal land, and it is not for the Palestinians only , but for all Muslims.

Which brings up two questions:

Has any Palestinian Christian leader ever expressed discomfort at being explicitly sidelined and dhimmified when Islamic Jihad and Hamas make statements like these?

Has any leftist "pro-Palestinian" group ever condemned the ambitions of Hamas and Islamic Jihad, whose clear goal is not to create an independent Palestine but to use it as a step in the creation of a pan-Muslim 'umma?

The answer to both can be found in the latter half of what the PIJ leader said:

[All Muslims] must release the land from the terrorism of the Zionist enemy.

As long as you frame your goals in terms of destroying Israel, who cares what your ultimate goal is? Because everyone can agree that the main goal is the destruction of the Jewish state, not the niggling details of what would replace it.

Turetsky Choir singing Hebrew classics to large Russian audience (video)

I was forwarded this interesting video of a group singing in the Kremlin State Palace:

This is the Turetsky Choir, and Israel Matzav has their background.

(h/t Lenny)

Elder poster sightings

Sylvia in the comments points to a French site that used my "Apartheid?" posters pretty effectively. The first one adds to my poster series, and even matches the font I use to make them all look consistent:

This second poster is a zinger, comparing how many Arabs hold high positions in Israeli government and cultural institutions with how prominent they are in Europe.

By those standards, the EU and France are far worse "apartheid" states than Israel! (Update: Some commenters point out that there are some Arab members of the Dutch parliament, for example, but I think the poster might be referring to the European Parliament.)

Also, my Miral poster spoofs appeared on the Aish website.