Crazy rumor that Netanyahu said he would destroy Lebanon

A bizarre rumor has been floating around. Here is the most embellished version I could find, from a Malaysian blog, but parts of it are all over the web:

At a news conference in Switzerland, on the occasion of the building an Israeli railway there, the German newspaper Die Zeit interviewed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu:

“Congratulations Mr. Netanyahu, my first question is that does the beginning of the large train line’s construction confirm the announcement of the dissident Syrian Intelligence Office that you will strike Lebanon?”

In reply, Netanyahu stated:

“Yes, and it is not a secret that it will happen with U.S-Gulf support and that is why they have been warned, but before you ask, you have a look at the new map of the world and see that there is no nation with this name.” Given that the UN Security Council has listed 388 Israeli airspace violations by Israel against Lebanon, there is no doubt what Israel is planning regarding Lebanon.

President Michel Suleiman condemned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s recent statements on Lebanon, saying that its existence will not be affected by his remarks.

"Lebanon is the only country to have defeated Israel militarily and the Jewish state is still recovering from it.” Indeed, the only thing that stopped Israel in 2006 from wiping Lebanon off the map was the defense against them provided by Hezbollah, who sent them crying with their tails between their legs.

...
Syria and Hezbollah in Lebanon are on high alert in anticipation of an Israeli attack on Lebanon, the London-based A-Sharq al-Awsat daily reported recently. According to the report, Hezbollah has been monitoring with caution the reinforcement of IDF troops along the Lebanon border.

It is also interesting to note that the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani, admitted that the Israeli train line is funded by Qatar, UAE, and Saudi Arabia. Asked if he was not afraid of his people, he affirmed the close friendly relations between the two countries. Qatar, the one that has had a vested interest in formenting terrorism and and ‘regime change” in Libya, Syria and elsewhere.

As Victor Ivrii writes:

This quotation has been broadcasted all over anti-Israel websites and blogs despite being obviously bogus. Those who invented it were smoking pretty mighty stuff or had a great albeit pervert sense of humour. They only failed to mention that Netanyahu made this announcement on the board of the Israeli submarine—aircraft carrier on the Geneva lake

Israel possesses an expertise in many areas but railway building is not among them and many foreign companies are building railways and light rails in Israel. On the contrary, Swiss are experts here. And even if Israel was building a railway in Switzerland how could this construction be used to strike Lebanon?

Ivrii speculates that the quote originated in this Pravda article, but in fact it was created out of whole cloth a week earlier.

From a website called The Islam Times, February 22:

Qatar (Islam Times) – The Emir of Qatar Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani confirmed that Israel is a friendly country and considered that using Qatar for the military operation in Libya is a Qatari mandate.

At a news conference in Switzerland, on the occasion of building the first and largest Israeli railway, the German newspaper “Die Zeit” asked the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu: Congratulations Mr. Netanyahu, my first question is that does the beginning of the large train line’s construction confirm the announcement of the dissident Syrian Intelligent Office that you will strike Lebanon?

Netanyahu replied: Yes, and it is not a secret that it will happen with U.S.-Gulf support and that is why they have been warned, but before you ask you have look at the new map of the world and see that there is no nation with this name.

The German journalist directed a question at the Emir of Qatar Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani and said: The Israeli train line is funded by Qatar, UAE, and Saudi Arabia, are you not afraid of your people.

The Emir of Qatar answered: Israel is a friendly country and there is no fear of our people.

When this completely bogus quote was reported to Lebanon's president, he indeed responded as if it was true. From Naharnet, February 23:

President Michel Suleiman condemned on Thursday Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s recent statements on Lebanon, saying that its existence will not be affected by his remarks.

He added in a statement: “Lebanon is the only country to have defeated Israel militarily and the Jewish state is still recovering from it.”

Netanyahu had said on Wednesday that an Israeli strike against Lebanon would be supported by the United States and countries of the Arab Gulf.

In addition, he remarked that there is no such thing as Lebanon on the world map.

He made his statements at a press conference during a trip to Switzerland.

This is just one way how a stupid, easily provable lie can get repeated across the world, and even be believed by Arab leaders and ostensibly respected newspapers without the slightest bit of skepticism.

But if you disagree and believe this idiotic nonsense, all you need to do is find me the article in Die Zeit.

(h/t Samson2)

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Arab Insult News

From Al Arabiya:

The Arab League chief, Nabil al-Araby, has said comments made by a Muslim Brotherhood spokesperson in Egypt against the United Arab Emirates were “hostile,” in a statement issued by his office on Monday.

The Brotherhood spokesman, Mahmoud Ghozlan, had threatened action against the UAE if the Gulf country would attempt to capture and prosecute prominent Muslim scholar Sheikh Yusuf al-Qaradawi.

The Sheikh had sparked a heated row between the UAE and his Brotherhood supporters when he criticized the Gulf state for reportedly revoking the visas of Syrians who protested against the regime of President Bashar al-Assad outside of the Syrian consulate in Dubai.

Qaradawi’s comments provoked a heated response from the Dubai police chief, Dhahi Khalfan, who threatened to arrest the Sheikh.

“We are going to issue an arrest warrant against Sheikh Qaradawi” Khalfan wrote on his Twitter account earlier this week.

“If he insults the UAE will we leave him? ...Whoever insults the state or the government of the UAE, I will pursue him,” the police chief added.

In response to the Muslim Brotherhood’s retaliated threat of action against the UAE, Egyptian media cited Araby as saying on Monday: “I call on all political forces to resort to wisdom and prudence and to avoid hostile attitudes and irresponsible statements that can be detrimental to relations between Arab countries, and that cause dissension and division.”

The Arab League chief added: “We are about to prepare for the coming Arab summit in Baghdad, which we hope would restore the spirit of Arab solidarity and unify Arab positions on the challenges and major variables facing the region.”

And, yes, insulting the government can land you in jail, even in "moderate" Arab states:

Jordanian military prosecutors have charged six activists with insulting King Abdullah II during a demonstration in the southern city of Tafileh last week, a judicial official said on Tuesday.

"Twenty-one have been arrested following the demonstration. State security court prosecutors have charged all of them with rioting and six of insulting the king," the official told AFP.

If convicted, the six suspects face three years in prison each.

You see, that's why we need the Arab Spring. Instead of getting thrown in jail for three years for insulting the king, you can face the death penalty for insulting Mohammed. It's so much less barbaric.

Speaking of, it looks like the Saudi who tweeted messages meant to treat Mohammed like a human being - and who was charged with apostasy as a result - may get a light sentence, due to pressure from human rights activists and an abject, groveling apology he made in court:

An apostate Saudi journalist who is believed to be facing execution for insulting Prophet Mohammed PBUH (Peace Be Upon Him) has repented at court and this means reduced sentence.

According to the Arabic language daily Sharq, Hamza Kashgari declared his repentance before the judge at the court in Riyadh.

“Kashgari declared his repentance and expressed regret for offending the Prophet (PBUH)….this means he will face a light sentence,” the paper said, citing Kashgari relatives.

The 23-year-old man, who works for Albilad Arabic language daily, fled to Malaysia last month after King Abdullah ordered his arrest on charges of apostasy in an article he wrote on Twitter. A few days later, he was deported to the Kingdom and arrested on arrival.

Speculation mounted after his arrest that Kashgari could be executed following statements by a senior Saudi Muslim cleric that the writer would be sentenced to death for apostasy.

Sheikh Saleh bin Fowzan Al Fowzan, a member of the 7-man supreme committee of scholars in Saudi Arabia, said it has been established in Islam that any one who insults God or the Prophet should be killed.

“Repenting will not work…any man who insults God or our Prophet (PBUH) should be killed,” he said. “But we should first verify that this man (Kashgari) did insult Prophet Mohammed in his article on Twitter…if verified, then he must be killed……many scholars and people are now demanding his execution.”

In an official statement, Kashghari announced that he had repented and asked for forgiveness. "I admit that my ideas and words were deviant. Some doubts had affected my thinking and drove me away from the correct path," he said.

He said he had completely abandoned all his wrong ideas and the tweets he wrote, saying he was depressed at the time.

Kashghari thanked family, relatives, friends and scholars who supported him and tried to guide him to the correct religious path.

Just so you know the rule:  make sure you never, ever insult Islam, orArab leaders, or any sheikhs, or Mohammed, or any other prophets, or the Quran, or Allah. Judaism and Christianity and "non-divine religions" and Western leaders are fair game, though.

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Those ancient "Palestinian shekels"

From PMW:

A Judean Shekel coin from the year 66 CE, the first year of the Jewish rebellion against Rome, was sold for $1.1 million this past week at an auction in New York. The words in Hebrew "Shekel of Israel [Year] 1" are printed on the front of the coin, and "Jerusalem the holy" appears on the back. [New York Post, March 10, 2012]

The official Palestinian Authority daily in writing about the auction described the Hebrew coin from the Second Temple period as an "ancient Palestinian coin" and as being part of the "Palestinian cultural tradition."

The article adds that the Jews' "political agenda" takes advantage of the sale of ancient Hebrew coins. The PA, which does not recognize Israel's right to exist, and only at times acknowledges that the state does exist, categorizes any archeological evidence of Israel's ancient past in the land as a "political agenda":

"It [the sale] is an opportunity for Jewish and Western scholars to use the Jewish revolt against the Romans in Palestine for a political agenda, and to connect this local revolt with the establishment of the Israeli occupation state."

Yeah, why would Jews be interested in an ancient Jewish coin from Judea that documents a Jewish revolt at the time that Jews had their own nation? Obviously, it is political!

Which brings up the question: if the coin is such a beautiful example of Palestinian heritage, why are no Palestinians bidding for it?

In a similar vein, a Jordanian named Gasser Anani gave a lecture last week about the supposed Judaization of Jerusalem, and he also talked about shekels, saying that they were realy an ancient Palestinian currency called "Shakla" and Israel "stole" them.

Of course, there is no such thing as an "ancient Palestinian currency." There would have had to be a Palestine for that to have been created. The first Palestinian currency was created by the British in 1927, and it had Hebrew on it.

In fact, the shekel is a unit of weight that was around since the Akkadian Empire and that morphed into a currency as it was usually used for silver. Jews never claimed that it was a Jewish invention; it is mentioned in the Bible as an already existing standard weight of silver in Abraham's time (Genesis 23) when he paid 400 shekels for what was to become the Tomb of the Patriarchs.

(h/t Stan)

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The BBC allows Gaza liar to dominate interview

From Biased BBC, from Monday:

I've been waiting to see how the BBC would cover the recent missile terror attacks on Israel from Hamastan and finally, this morning, the BBC Today programme deigned to cover it @ 8.21am Naturally, Humphrys instantly suggested that Israel was to blame by impertinently striking against the Islamic terrorists that operate freely within Gaza. Then we had an interview, if you can it that, with Dr Aryeh Kontorovich who lives in Beersheva in southern Israel and Dr Mona El-Farra, vice president of the Red Crescent in Gaza. Basically Dr Mona was allowed to ramble on and on, without interruption. One wonders how the BBC can dare to suggest that the Red Crescent is some sort of neutral charity providing organisation after the semi coherent propaganda spouted by El-Farra. It doesn't matter what the situation is - when it comes to the BBC, Israel is ALWAYS to blame. Now, why might that be, do you think?

Commenter Sue went into detail on the interview, which you can hear here:

I found the respective speaking times as follows:

Dr Kontorovich 00:2:15:49
Dr. El-Farra 00:3:41:87

During Dr. Kontorovich’s two minutes, Humphrys managed to ask four questions including one statement:
“This started at the weekend, Friday? Things had been quiet since September?”
To which Dr. Kontorovich replied:
“In Be’ersheba, but I must stress that rockets have been falling continuously on Israel, but at a low intensity”
Humphrys ignored this, repeating:
“This (intensity) has been as a direct result of attacks on Gaza on Friday morning.”

Dr Kontorovich seemed upset and flustered, while Dr El-Farra let forth a continual stream of invective, alternately accusatory and self pitying. She was allowed to digress, uninterrupted, apart from an interjection by Humphrys “Sorry, the line isn’t terribly good (it was fine) if I can perhaps explain what was you’re saying. The car carrying this man described as a militant leader, that was attacked form the air...”

Mona El-Farra re-interrupted back, and continued by denying, twice, that there have been any rocket attacks from Gaza.

“let me tell you that for the last four months there were no rockets against Israel and Palestinians respected the cease-fire.”

“It is not a war between two equal parties, Israel with its very strong army attacking a group of militia, many that have been confined to the cease-fire for the last four months. This time Israel started [it]. I will not talk more about this.”

She was allowed to digress, completely uninterrupted for a further minute or two, listing everything lacking in Gaza, and she evaded the one significant point that Humphrys put to her, which was that if the rocket attacks from Gaza were to cease, there would be no raids into Gaza by Israel. The nearest she got to addressing that point was to say she didn’t approve of rocket attacks.

This interview was typically incompetent and misleading.

Indeed, the Red Crescent doctor is allowed to spout lies without the least attempt by the BBC interviewer to challenge her. Her insistence that Israel was targeting children and that there were no rockets from Gaza in four months was especially egregious.

Ha'aretz lists rocket attacks for the past year:

January, 2011 - 39 rockets fired toward Israel

February, 2011 - 28 rockets fired toward Israel

March, 2011 - 105 rockets fired toward Israel following clashes in Gaza

April, 2011 - 140 rockets fired toward Israel following an IDF hit on a Hamas terror cell

May, 2011 - 1 rocket fired toward Israel

June, 2011 - No rockets were fired toward Israel

July, 2011 - 27 rockets fired toward Israel

August, 2011 - 171 rockets fired toward Israel after a coordinated terror attack by Palestinian militants kills eight Israelis

September, 2011 - 13 rockets fired toward Israel

October, 2011 - 56 rockets fired toward Israel as response to release of former captive IDF soldier Gilad Shalit

November, 2011 - 9 rockets fired toward Israel

December, 2011 - 42 rockets fired toward Israel

January, 2012 - 18 rockets fired toward Israel

February, 2012 - 30 rockets fired toward Israel

March, 2012 - Some 200 rockets fired toward Israel after the IDF assassinates the leader of Popular Resistance Committees

(h/t Yoel)

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How an Irish leftist changed his mind about Israel

This article from the Irish Independent has been going around, and for good reason:

I used to hate Israel. I used to think the Left was always right. Not any more. Now I loathe Palestinian terrorists. Now I see why Israel has to be hard. Now I see the Left can be Right -- as in right-wing. So why did I change my mind so completely?

Strangely, it began with my anger at Israel's incursion into Gaza in December 2008 which left over 1,200 Palestinians dead, compared to only 13 Israelis. I was so angered by this massacre I posed in the striped scarf of the Palestinian Liberation Organisation for an art show catalogue.

Shortly after posing in that PLO scarf, I applied for funding from the Irish Arts Council to make a film in Israel and Palestine. I wanted to talk to these soldiers, to challenge their actions -- and challenge the Israeli citizens who supported them.

I spent seven weeks in the area, dividing my time evenly between Israel and the West Bank. I started in Israel. The locals were suspicious. We were Irish -- from a country which is one of Israel's chief critics -- and we were filmmakers. We were the enemy.

Then I crossed over into the West Bank. Suddenly, being Irish wasn't a problem. Provo graffiti adorned The Wall. Bethlehem was Las Vegas for Jesus-freaks -- neon crucifixes punctuated by posters of martyrs.

These martyrs followed us throughout the West Bank. They watched from lamp-posts and walls wherever we went. Like Jesus in the old Sacred Heart pictures.

But the more I felt the martyrs watching me, the more confused I became. After all, the Palestinian mantra was one of "non-violent resistance". It was their motto, repeated over and over like responses at a Catholic mass.

Yet when I interviewed Hind Khoury, a former Palestinian government member, she sat forward angrily in her chair as she refused to condemn the actions of the suicide bombers. She was all aggression.

This aggression continued in Hebron, where I witnessed swastikas on a wall. As I set up my camera, an Israeli soldier shouted down from his rooftop position. A few months previously I might have ignored him as my political enemy. But now I stopped to talk. He only talked about Taybeh, the local Palestinian beer.

Back in Tel Aviv in the summer of 2011, I began to listen more closely to the Israeli side. I remember one conversation in Shenkin Street -- Tel Aviv's most fashionable quarter, a street where everybody looks as if they went to art college. I was outside a cafe interviewing a former soldier.

He talked slowly about his time in Gaza. He spoke about 20 Arab teenagers filled with ecstasy tablets and sent running towards the base he'd patrolled. Each strapped with a bomb and carrying a hand-held detonator.

The pills in their bloodstream meant they felt no pain. Only a headshot would take them down.

Conversations like this are normal in Tel Aviv. I began to experience the sense of isolation Israelis feel. An isolation that began in the ghettos of Europe and ended in Auschwitz.

Israel is a refuge -- but a refuge under siege, a refuge where rockets rain death from the skies. And as I made the effort to empathise, to look at the world through their eyes. I began a new intellectual journey. One that would not be welcome back home.

The problem began when I resolved to come back with a film that showed both sides of the coin. Actually there are many more than two. Which is why my film is called Forty Shades of Grey. But only one side was wanted back in Dublin. My peers expected me to come back with an attack on Israel. No grey areas were acceptable.

...

Any artist worth his or her salt should be ready to change their mind on receipt of fresh information. So I would urge every one of those 216 Irish artists who pledged to boycott the Israeli state to spend some time in Israel and Palestine. Maybe when you come home you will bin your scarf. I did.

Read the whole thing.

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Hamas website is posting IDF videos!

The Hamas news site Palestine Times has a series of videos about the events of the past few days.

Interestingly, two of them were posted on YouTube by the IDF.

One was this video where residents of Ashdod hear six huge explosions:



They have similar videos of Israelis running to shelters. The idea is to show their rocket fire is causing panic among Israelis - which is, after all, the very definition of terrorism.

The other video is more interesting. It is the interview that I posted yesterday of PRC spokesmen who insist that Hamas is not doing anything to stop their rocket fire. The caption it "The Brigades commends the government's support for the resistance."

Which means that Hamas is also admitting that they are not trying to discourage terror groups from shooting rockets at Israel.

The very things that the IDF wants to communicate with the outside world - that Gaza rocket fire is aimed randomly at civilians, that they can cause serious damage, that Gaza's leadership wholeheartedly supports their firing - are what Hamas brags about to their people!

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Did Israel agree to stop "assassinations?" (updated)

From Reuters/Ma'an:

Islamic Jihad said on Tuesday it would adhere to its commitments under a truce deal brokered by Egypt to end four days of fighting with Israel that killed 25 Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.

Jihad leader Daoud Shihab told Ma'an the deal was reached after many meetings and discussions with Egypt. The movement stressed it demanded that Israel halt assassinations of political leaders, Shihab said.

The latest fighting was sparked when Israeli warplanes killed the leader of the Popular Resistance Committees on Friday.

Shihab said the group is committed to the truce as long as Israel adheres to its commitments. "We do not trust Israel, but we trust our power and if Israel does not commit, we will reply," he added.

He called the truce a victory for Islamic Jihad, and a Palestinian achievement.

A senior Egyptian security official told Reuters that the deal to cease hostilities was set to take effect at 1 a.m. local time (2300 GMT).

The official said in a telephone call from Cairo that both sides had "agreed to end the current operations", with Israel giving an unusual undertaking to "stop assassinations", and an overall agreement "to begin a comprehensive and mutual calm."

"There is an understanding," Israeli Civil Defense Minister Matan Vilnai told Israel Radio. "At the moment the direction is toward calm and it appears, unless there are last minute developments, that this round is now behind us."

Amos Gilad, a senior Israeli defense official, said Israel would feel free to take "pre-emptive action" if Israeli lives were in danger -- a reference to future strikes against Palestinian militants believed to be planning attacks.

But, he told Army Radio, if "there is quiet on their part, there will be quiet on our part."

A Palestinian official close to the talks said "the factions are committed," alluding to the Islamic Jihad and Popular Resistance Committees, who were most active in the fighting, but that these groups were waiting to see how Israel would respond.

Vilnai was quoted as saying in a radio interview that "anyone who is planning to carry out attacks must calculate that he might be targeted."

There is a lot of contradictory information here.

Islamic Jihad has been explicit that it wants to see a stop to "assassinations," by which it appears to mean targeting of terrorist leaders, not weapons depots or other targets. Its own announcement of the cease fire - hours after an angry communique that insisted that it would never accept any calm with Israel - only mentioned the "assassination" aspect and didn't ask for a stop to airstrikes in Gaza altogether.

From all appearances, Islamic Jihad leaders are trying to save their own skins. There announcement was striking by not referencing any pain that Gaza citizens might be feeling; it was only about their "mujahadeen." They simply don't care about anyone but themselves.

The question is, what exactly did Israel agree to?

On Friday, after a few rockets hit Israel, Israel attacked and killed the PRC leader, saying that he was planning a major terror attack on Israel. Did Israel commit to not doing so again? From the quotes that are out there, the answer is a strong "perhaps" depending on who is doing the speaking. It seems inconceivable that Israel agreed not to kill people preparing to shoot rockets into Israel. Or would Israel wait until the rockets are in the air?

The Jerusalem Post adds: (h/t Ian)

Speaking with Army Radio Tuesday morning, hours after the Egyptian-brokered deal came into effect, Gilad denied that Israel committed to refrain from assassinating heads of terrorist organizations in the Gaza Strip.

"There is no written agreement," Gilad said, "Israel has no documents, no negotiations, no contacts with the terrorist organizations."

The only understanding that exists, he reiterated, is quiet.

If Israeli intelligence knows of a terrorist attack being planned, "there will be action to prevent it."

Either way, while things are calmer, that are hardly calm.

An Israeli army spokesman said three rockets landed in southern Israel Tuesday morning, without causing injuries.

Several mortars have also been fired recently.

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To Nader's Unborn Children

A short article in the blog "Sleepless in Gaza" is getting a lot of attention, as it is filled with pathos - and more than a few lies sprinkled in:

To my unborn children,

I know you probably won’t be there to read this. Maybe I would be dead before you see the light. Or rather, witness how very inhumane and so unjust this world has become. I’ll just write anyway, maybe at least your elder brother or sister witnesses all that and read this.

Ever since I came to Gaza, I’ve been dreaming of a better life. Peaceful and quiet. No explosions or blood. No injuries or martyrs. Nothing but a regular peaceful life each and every one of us would wish for.

In Gaza, everything is different. In Gaza, Israeli F16s substitute birds. In Gaza, we sleep on the continuous buzzing coming from the ever-existent drones. We wake up to find that there’s no electricity. In Gaza, explosions are the sunshine and the smell of ash is the scent of the city.

Electricity barely comes in Gaza, where it’s very dangerous to live in. Every moment you live is considered a new life because it’s very dangerous and Israelis bring their toys over to Gaza and play with us the hard way.

My beloved unborn children, being a Gazan means that you’re strong willed, courageous, and like no other. As you grow up, you’ll learn all about the different kinds of weapons and arms both allowed and internationally forbidden. What’s different in Gaza is that Israel doesn’t distinguish its targets. Meaning, they kill anything that moves with a smile. Frankly, they would kill us more than once if possible.

Growing up in Gaza isn’t easy. Growing up in Gaza is a challenge. A quest. And the reward is a strong courageous personality. So brave to the point that you’d stand in front of a tank with a bare chest and a rock. Daring it to move forward yelling ‘over my dead body’. More like mashed if you want to know.

Another thing you’ll gain as a Gazan is that you’ll be able to distinguish the sounds of whatever that kills. Be a M-16, AK-47, .50 Cal, Shells from the Israeli warships in the sea, warplanes in the sky, tank shells, and the list goes on forever. Living in Gaza is a challenge of patience. Only the strong and the brave can survive. By survive, I mean living yet another day of struggle and a million hardships a day.

Last but not least, don’t leave Palestine. It’s where you belong. It’s where everything counts and where whatever little will make a huge change. Don’t leave Palestine because it’s my motherland. Your motherland. Don’t leave Palestine because at the end of the day, it’s all you’ve got left. Don’t leave Palestine even if you’ll be living on olive oil and thyme all your life.

PS: tell your mother that I love her so much. Kiss her cheeks and forehead for me.

With all my love,
Papa.

The most outrageous lie is, of course, "Israel doesn’t distinguish its targets. Meaning, they kill anything that moves with a smile. Frankly, they would kill us more than once if possible." This sickening calumny inserted in an otherwise heart-rending piece turns this from what could have been brilliant into just another case of inciting hate against Israeli Jews.

But there is much to be said for the piece, as no one - not even a Zionist - can fail to be moved by the light of Gazans. The problem is that the anger is misplaced.

So, even though the truth has no chance of infiltrating the pitch-black hate that the Arab world has for Israel, here is a Zionist's letter to Nader's unborn children:

---

Dear children,

You don't know me. And there are many people who want to make sure that you never will know me.

Because there are many people - your leaders, your teachers, your journalists - who have much at stake in painting me and all Zionists as evil, genocidal murderers.

In 2005, after much agonizing and soul-searching, Israel decided to uproot hundreds of Jewish, Zionist families from Gaza. Gazans were chafing under Israeli rule, and Israelis there were living in fear of terror attacks from Gazans. While the Jewish residents who lived there did not want to go, the Israeli government - led by the most right-wing prime minister in Israeli history - decided to forcibly remove them. Perhaps you can appreciate how much it hurts to lose one's home.

The reason Israel decided to do this was simple: it was hoped that such a move would help bring peace to the region. Without the Israeli presence there, people thought that Gaza could turn into a Singapore on the Mediterranean. There would be no more reason for rocket attacks on Jewish communities. The Palestinians could build their own paradise.

Some wealthy American Zionists even paid millions of dollars to buy the greenhouses the Israelis were leaving behind, as a gift to help Gaza's economy and to help jump start the metamorphosis of the sector into an oasis of peace. No one wanted peace more that Israel, and no one sacrificed more for peace than Israel. The lies you are being fed in school - that Israel is an expansionist state dedicated to stealing land from Arabs - were shown to be false, because Israel left Gaza for only one reason: in the hopes of bringing peace to the region.

Things did not turn out that way.

Militant groups in Gaza continued to shoot rockets at Israel. Hamas ended up taking over the area, killing hundreds of fellow Palestinians in the process. An Israeli soldier was kidnapped and hidden in Gaza.

The leaders of Gaza - your leaders - never dismantled a single refugee camp. They imported thousands of weapons. They allied with Iran. They continued to threaten Israel and they continued to attack Israel.

You may not believe this, but no one would be happier with a peaceful Gaza than Israel would. No Zionist wants to see anyone in Gaza suffer. Nothing would thrill Zionists more than to see a Gaza where both sides can freely cross the border to buy goods or work without fear of being murdered by the other. The IDF does not kill innocent people on purpose - ever. No Israeli celebrates when innocents are, invariably, killed. And, as much as you are taught otherwise, Israel spends tens of millions of dollars to ensure that innocent civilians would not be hurt in Gaza when it defends itself.

Yes, Israel defends itself. And it will continue to do so. It is maddening that after the painful withdrawal from Gaza - a land that Jews have lived in, on and off, for over two thousand years - the peace that they yearned for  never came. On the contrary, the rocket attacks on innocent Negev communities increased. Israel is a sovereign nation and it will not tolerate attacks on its citizens. And you know quite well that the thousands of rockets that come from Gaza are aimed squarely at Israeli civilians. Israel will defend itself, and she will not apologize for it.

But she wishes she wouldn't have to.

Once upon a time, not long ago, there was the Erez Industrial Zone, where thousands of Gazans were employed and were able to support their families in dignity. It is no longer there, and the reason is because the terrorists that Gaza hosts and often celebrates would keep attacking it. The idea of co-existence and peace is not what Hamas or Islamic Jihad want.

Once upon a time, after the 2008-9 Gaza war - the war that your leaders started with a barrage of rockets similar to those seen this past weekend, in what they called Operation Oil Stain, a full three days before Israel attacked - Israel built a field hospital to help those injured in the war at Erez. Your leadership forbade anyone from coming and being helped.

Even today, while Israel is under fire - on the same day that your leaders shot mortars directly at the crossing where aid goes into Gaza - Israel did not close the crossing and sent hundreds of trucks over, because Israel does not want to hurt the innocent people of Gaza.

The only people who are aiming their weapons at civilians, on purpose, are the terrorists that your leaders are supporting. The only people who celebrate the deaths of innocent civilians are those on your side.

If you are willing to open your eyes, just a little, you will see what your leaders have done - that they have cynically hidden weapons in your mosques and neighbors' homes, that they have created an electricity crisis and power shortage because they are placing their own political goals above your welfare, that they have raised entire generations on hate rather than wishes for peace.

Israel wants peace, a real, lasting peace with all her neighbors. Your leaders have said, quite clearly and explicitly, that this is not what they want - they want to see the end of Israel.

So here we are. Do you want Gaza to become a Singapore or an Afghanistan? Whichever you choose, it will come true, sooner than you think. And if you choose the right one, your own children will never need to hear machine guns or rockets or warplanes and they will be able to grow up in peace and prosperity.

I wish you would get to know me. I don't hate you. And I would prefer to be friends.

Wishing you all long and peaceful lives where friendship can replace enmity and cooperation can replace hate,

A Zionist.

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Egyptian parliament demands expulsion of Israel ambassador

From Egypt Independent:

In an evening session Monday, the People’s Assembly demanded the deportation of the Israeli ambassador, Yaakov Amitai, and the withdrawal of the Egyptian ambassador from Tel Aviv.

The assembly voted unanimously on a statement prepared by the Committee on Arab Affairs, which also called for stopping gas exports to Israel in protest against the brutal attacks committed by Israel against the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip, considering it a flagrant violation of human rights.

Assembly speaker Saad al-Katatny asked a special parliamentary committee to follow up the implementation of the demands with the government.

The statement said, “Egypt after the revolution will never be a friend of the Zionist entity, the first enemy of Egypt and the Arab nation,” and demanded that the Egyptian government review all its relations and agreements with that “enemy.”

It also called for activating the Arab boycott of the “Zionist entity” and the international companies that deal with it, considering such boycott strong support of the “choice of resistance,” the strategic option for the liberation of the occupied territories.

Sounds like the "new" Egypt is taking rhetorical talking points from Gamal Abdel Nasser.

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Latest Zionist crime: An offensive cigarette lighter

From Quds Media, in another embarrassing attempt to incite Arabs to war:

In what is being seen as an extension of the commercialization of Israel’s formal Judaisation policies, an Israeli company has sparked wide condemnation for marketing a new lighter which has the Israeli flag superimposed on a picture of the Dome of the Rock in occupied Jerusalem’s Noble Sanctuary of Al-Aqsa. “Israel” is written alongside in Hebrew. Al-Aqsa Foundation for Religious Endowment and Heritage has called the company’s act “a flagrant violation of Al-Aqsa Mosque and an attempt to Judaise it”.

In a statement released to the media, the Foundation said that the Israeli occupation authorities “are trying, through state institutions and now commercial ventures to obliterate Islamic landmarks, especially Al-Aqsa Mosque”. The mosque has been the site of armed incursions by illegal Jewish settlers intent on carrying out Talmudic rituals inside Islam’s third holiest mosque. “This move emphasises the threat to Al-Aqsa Mosque,” claimed the Foundation.

“Israel is trying to strengthen its occupation and hold over Al-Aqsa,” said the statement, “and this is not the first time that the image of Al-Aqsa has been used to promote Israeli goods.” This was a reference to an earlier use of the mosque’s picture on Israeli wine bottles.

Actually, they were vodka bottles as well as wine bottles.

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PA elections will be delayed. What a surprise.

From The National (UAE):

Palestinians will not hold presidential and parliamentary elections in May because of disagreements between the two main political factions, a Palestinian elections official said this week.

The gridlocked Hamas-Fatah reconciliation has made it impossible for the Palestinian Central Elections Commission (CEC) to hold elections on May 4, the date originally set by the groups, said the Ramallah-based organisation's chief electoral officer, Hisham Kuhail.

"May 4 is out of the question," said Mr Kuhail, who oversees the CEC. In an interview with The National, he said the commission cannot stage the election primarily because Hamas will not allow it to make the necessary preparations in Gaza, such as updating the voting registry and installing voting centres.

The problem can be resolved only by "real reconciliation between Hamas and Fatah", he said.

Further, under Palestinian law, Palestinian Authority president, Mahmoud Abbas, must issue a decree instructing the CEC to begin preparing for the elections. This process takes 90 days.

"But to this moment, that has not happened," Mr Kuhail said.

The earliest feasible date to organise an election would be after June, he said.

A Hamas-Fatah agreement signed in Cairo last year was supposed to have led to an interim government that would govern both Gaza and the West Bank until elections took place.

Mr Abbas probably will not issue the order for the elections until Hamas and Fatah settle their disagreements over who will run the interim government, sources say.

Given how Gaza Hamas leader Haniyeh has been acting alike a head of state, undermining not only Abbas but even Hamas political leader Meshal, this is hardly surprising. Hamas will not willingly give up or share power in Gaza, and indeed will do everything they can to take over in Ramallah as well, hoping for an Egyptian-style revolution that would replace the current PA leadership with Islamists.

See also Elliot Abrams' commentary.

(h/t Ian)

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Egyptian clerics: "Hatred of Jews is a form of worship" (MEMRI)

This one's got it all: Jews are donkeys, "President" Benjamin Franklin (who was president 50 years ago) warned the US against them, calls to kill all Jews, and more.

But don't call them anti-semitic.

Egyptian cleric Gharib Ramadhan: There are very many traits that characterize the Jews, and the Koran focused on a few of them, such as the violation of commitments, from which we suffer to this day. Not just us in Egypt – the entire world suffers from this.

Another trait is their hard-heartedness, God forbid. If you want to know what true hard-heartedness means, go to the Jews. You will find a lot of it there.

[…]

They were deported from England by King Edward, and from France by King Philip. They were deported from Hungary, from Belgium, from Czechoslovakia, from Austria – I won't start with the dates – from Holland, from the Kingdom of Naples, from Russia… Wherever they go they get deported and then they return. For example, they went back to France and to Hungary, and were deported again. If they are good people, how come people get rid of them?

Allah punished them by transforming them into apes and pigs, and by prohibiting them from eating several edible things. He forbade them to eat anything with claws – animals and birds that do not have cloven hooves, like camels, geese, ducks… They are prohibited from eating ducks. If Sheik Amin were here, he could have told us how greatly they were punished.

Moderator: May Allah reward you, Dr. Gharib.

Egyptian cleric Shihab Al-Din Abu Zahu: I would like to comment on…

Moderator: Make it quick, we have a break.

Shihab Al-Din Abu Zahu: He said that they were deported from wherever they went. US President Benjamin Franklin… It is the US that sponsors them today, but if the Americans had acted upon Franklin's legacy, they would have saved America. May Allah make them fall along with the Jews.

US President Benjamin Franklin said: "A great danger threatens the United States of America. That danger is the Jewish danger. In whichever land the Jews have settled, they have corrupted the morals, and lowered the level of commercial honesty. They always isolate themselves and never mix with others. For more than 1,700 years, they have been lamenting their fate, because they were expelled from the lands of their forefathers.

If Palestine were given back to them, not all of them would go there, because they are parasites and cannot live at the expense of their own kind. They must live among the Christians or others not of their race.

If these Jews are not expelled from the United States by the Constitution, within a century, they will be streaming into the US in such large numbers that will enable them to rule and destroy our people. They will change the form of government for which we shed our blood, and for which we have sacrificed our lives, our property, and our personal freedom. Within less than a century, our grandchildren will have to work in the fields in order to feed the Jews, while the Jews control the financial institutions. If the American people do not deport the Jews once and for all, their children and grandchildren will curse them in their graves.

The values of the Jews are not the same of those of the Americans, and will not be the same even if the Jews live among us for ten generations. A leopard cannot change its spots. The Jews will pose a danger to America, if they are allowed freely in. They will destroy US institutions, and the Americans must deport by the Constitution." These are the words of US President Franklin.

[…]

Egyptian cleric Abd Al-Rahman Al-Sawi: In the Koran, Allah called the Jews "donkeys." Donkeys. They are donkeys. What can you do with a donkey? Allah said: "Those who were charged with the Torah, but failed [in this obligation], are similar to a donkey carrying books." These are the Jews, right? They failed in the obligation to carry the Torah.

We are not talking about the Jews of the days of Moses. They repented. They were tormented until they believed in Moses. We don't mean those Jews. We mean the Jews of today. They are like donkeys carrying books. There is a very symbolic story that really moved me.

A man was sitting in his home, when all of a sudden, in walked a donkey. What was he supposed to do with this donkey? He began screaming: "Donkey, get out! Get out!" But the donkey wouldn't leave. "Don't you understand? Get out," he said, but the donkey wouldn't budge. What was he to do? He grabbed a microphone, and screamed: "People, I have a donkey in my home, and he must leave." But the donkey would not move. He brought all the neighbors, and they all began shouting: "We denounced the donkey for entering your home." But the donkey wouldn't leave.

The man said to the donkey: "The apartment has three bedrooms, a bathroom, and a living room. Take one room, and leave the rest to us." The donkey twitched its ear, but wouldn't leave. The man said: "Donkey, take two rooms," but the donkey wouldn't leave. "Take the room, and we will live in the bathroom." To no avail. Finally, the people began to scream: "The donkey won't leave!"

A little boy heard them, walked in with a small stick, and began beating the donkey until it got out. Beat a donkey, and it will immediately jump. That's what you do with donkeys.

[…]

[The Jews] support all the means of corruption. They support whorehouses. They support satellite dishes in order to air whatever they like. Birth control pills and devices are supported by the Jews. Dr. Shihab quoted President Franklin, who was US president 40-50 years ago. He said that they spread corruption even among the Americans. That is why they were deported from everywhere.

[…]
Egyptian cleric 'Alaa Said: The [Jews] are treacherous. Allah, who created them, told us so. We must be resolute and fill hearts with hatred and loathing. By Allah, the hatred and loathing of Jews is a form of worship. When we make our children loathe the Jews, it is a form of worship of Allah. These are people hated and loathed by Allah.

[…]

Abd Al-Rahman Al-Sawi: I want our children to be raised on this notion. When I give a child a toy, I give him a gun, not a football. Enough with the football. I give him a gun and tell him: Shoot, but don't shoot your brother. Shoot the Jews.

(h/t O)

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