BDS threats frighten another artist into cancelling Israel gig

From the Facebook page of Salif Keita:

August 22, 2013

Dear Sacred Music Festival, Hadassah Hospital, Salif Keita fans,

On behalf of Salif Keita and the Salif Keita Global Foundation, we would like to thank you for organizing a magnificent unifying music festival, and a visit of the albinism treatment center in Jerusalem. Unfortunately, Mr. Keita will not be able to attend either events because of the cancellation of his show at the Sacred Music Festival.

Although, the show was cancelled, Mr. Keita (and his foundation for albinism) would like to convey his most sincere apologies to all concerned, such as the concert organizers, the Albinism Treatment Center and especially all his wonderful and diverse fans in Israel. The reason for the cancellation is not one which was made by Mr. Keita, but by his agents who were bombarded with hundreds of threats, blackmail attempts, intimidation, social media harrassment and slander stating that Mr Keita was to perform in Israel, “not for peace, but for apartheid.”

These threats were made by a group named BDS, who also threatened to keep increasing an anti-Salif Keita campaign, which they had already started on social media, and to work diligently at ruining the reputation and career that Mr. Keita has worked 40 years to achieve not only professionally, but for human rights and albinism.

Of course, we do not agree with any of these tactics or false propaganda, but management’s concern is to protect the artist from being harmed personally and professionally. Although, we love Israel and all his fans here, and the fantastic spirit of unity of the Sacred Music Festival, as well as the important work your hospital is doing for albinism, we did not agree with the scare tactics and bullying used by BDS; therefore management decided to act cautiously when faced with an extremist group, as we believe BDS to be.

In addition, Mr. Keita is not a politician who plays for governments, but a musician who performs for his fans who are of all faiths and origins in Jerusalem. It is unfortunate that artists like him are threatened by this group who falsely claim to defend human rights, when they should take their concerns to governments or ask for support of their cause in a lawful way, and not by endangering the freedom of expression of artists, or using harassment and intimidation of artists who play for peace and for all people, in order to bring some kind of justice to the Palestinians they claim to represent.

Since Mr. Keita, during his stay and performance in Jerusalem, had planned to visit the Hadassah Hospital and albinism center, he had also planned to make a donation of certain goods to the hospital which he would still like to offer. The boxes are already in Jerusalem and were shipped for his planned visit to the hospital. The modest donation consists of about a couple of hundred new UV protected sunglasses, as well as UV protected clothing, swimgear and hats for patients with albinism.

Again, we thank you for your invitation to Jerusalem, and are deeply saddened and disappointed by the outcome of this planned performance and visit. We hope that you will receive this donation with the love it was intended to bring to the patients, as we determine a future time to be able to perform in Israel, and visit your important center for albinism and skin cancer treatment.

Sincerely,

Salif Keita and Coumba Makalou
The Salif Keita Global Foundation INC
Washington, DC
Email: skgf@salifkeita.us

Ali Abunimah of Electronic Intifada  thinks that Salif Keita is a liar. According to him, a letter that blasts BDS and showers praise on Israel really means "boycott." The terror apologist proposes a bizarre theory to explain both this situation and the Eric Burdon incident:

Resort to unsupported claims of “threats” and potentially defamatory statements may be a tactic that some artists resort to when they do not wish to violate the Palestinian call to boycott Israel, but do not have the courage to take a political stance.

That makes perfect sense! The artists publicly say they love Israel, that they would love to play there, that they hate being intimidated by Abunimah's BDS groupies - but privately they really hate Israel, and they choose not to play because they want to support idiots who shower them with insults and threats.

This is an example of the logic of the BDS crowd. The funny thing is that they think these cancellations are victories, because from within their own tiny bubble that are utterly unaware how normal people are disgusted by their tactics. They honestly think that artists who get hundreds of insults are on their side. Clueless.

(Meanwhile, TV chef Anthony Bourdain is coming to Israel. Let the new set of threats begin!)

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The idea of real peace is shameful to Palestinian Arabs

From JPost:

For a group of Palestinian and Israeli researchers investigating methods to completely purify water from medicinal materials, working together is nothing short of critical.

“It is a must,” Dr. Rafik Karaman, of Al-Quds University’s College of Pharmacy in Abu Dis, told The Jerusalem Post on Monday.

The joint Palestinian-Israeli research team from Al-Quds University and the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology is working to assess the use of advanced membrane and bio-degradation technologies for eradicating pharmaceutical materials from treated waste-water. Organized by the Peres Center for Peace and sponsored by the French pharmaceutical giant Sanofi, the two-year project aims to investigate the degradation and removal processes of certain drugs found in aquatic environments that come from both domestic and industrial sources.

“In order to facilitate and progress with the research, we need the expertise of the Israeli side,” said Karaman, who is the principal researcher on the Palestinian side. “We can learn from them and they can learn from us, and this way you can do good research in Palestine.”

...While the work together is critical, Karaman stressed that it is nothing new, as Al-Quds researchers have been working with Technion researchers for around a decade on various wastewater projects.

This is the second such project under the auspices of the Peres Center, he explained, crediting the center for enabling them to pursue the research together.

“You learn from the relationship,” Karaman said. “I learn a lot and I also give a lot.”

Here is a great story, a story of cooperation and collaboration between two enemies for the common good. It should be looked upon as a model for the future, a future where two groups of people with historic grievances who are forced to live next to each other put their antipathy aside for the common good.

There is a slight problem, though. Only one side celebrates peace.

Dr. Karaman might have no problem working with Israelis - he received his degrees from Hebrew University - but there is no means within Palestinian Arab culture for that attitude to reach the masses.

If you search through Al Quds University's website, both in English and Arabic, it mentions nothing about working together with Israeli universities. In fact, the only mentions of "Technion" in Hebrew on the site is in an article about how Israel is "Judaizing" Jerusalem. The university has a museum for "prisoners affairs." It has a "human rights clinic" with a single project  - to demonize Israel through the Goldstone Report. Not a word that I could find about human rights under PA rule.

Of course, this cooperative project is not mentioned in a positive light in Palestinian Arab media. On the contrary - this article slams Al Quds for being involved in this project, saying that while it used to be a symbol of steadfastness now it has become a symbol of "normalization."

The best that can ever happen on the Arab side is a grudging admission that there is value in cooperating when absolutely necessary - but this should never be publicized.

For Israelis, real peace is the goal. For Israel's Arab neighbors, anything that resembles real peace is something to be ashamed of.

Which makes this just another reason why peace is impossible.

(h/t Zvi)

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8/22 Links Part 1: Israel Confirms Assad Used Chemical Weapons, Christians under siege

From Ian:

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JPost Editorial: Christians under siege

In the region as a whole, Christians account for between 2% and 5% of the region’s population, versus 20% 100 years ago. Lebanon’s Christians are at the mercy of the Shi’ite Hezbollah, whereas in Syria Christians are victimized by Sunnis. In Iraq they are walloped by everyone. In the Palestinian Authority Christian numbers are falling sharply too, as evidenced by the Muslim majority in once- Christian Bethlehem. Gaza’s Christians are running for their lives.
The one steadily growing Christian community in the Middle East is to be found in much-maligned little Israel.
Only under Jewish sovereignty are Christians safe and free from serial terror and harm. But the one beacon of genuine liberality in an unkind and callously intolerant region is hardly likely to win accolades from the self-styled enlightened world.

What are Western vital interests in the Middle East?

All of which makes it abundantly obvious by now that Arab democracy remains a very distant prospect. There can be no democracy without democrats; without the acceptance of minority rights – including religious minorities and women; without a modicum of law and order and economic sustenance; without the creation of genuine economic opportunities and social mobility for the largely disenfranchised youth of the region; without proper institution building and without the rise of civilian control over the military.
None of this can be achieved short-term by merely spouting pro-democracy slogans. Short-term goals should be economic stabilisation and security – none of which can be achieved by sanctioning the Egyptian military, especially given that Gulf financial support makes Western leverage insignificant and suspension of aid ineffectual.
Western governments should do better than entrust their national interests and foreign policy goals in the region to an incoherent sequence of statements spurred by emotional responses to evolving events they have no control over and are hardly responsible for. They should instead seek clearly to define their interests; understand how best to promote them; and balance them with a long-term commitment to democratisation.

Steinitz: Intelligence confirms Syrian use of chemical weapons

Minister for Intelligence and Strategic Affairs Yuval Steinitz said Thursday that chemical weapons were used in the previous day’s attack in Syria that left hundreds, and according to some reports thousands, dead in the eastern suburbs of Damascus.
“According to our intelligence assesments, chemical weapons were used [in the previous day's attack], and of course not for the first time,” Steinitz told Israel Radio.
Steinitz appeared to be blaming Syrian President Bashar Assad, calling his regime “exceptionally cruel.”
“The international community condemns [these attacks], there are investigations… nothing practical or substantial has been done these past two years in order to stop these massacres of civilians by the Assad regime,” Steinitz said.

France: Force is an option in Syria if gas attack confirmed

France’s foreign minister called Thursday for unspecified forceful action against Syria if it were shown that Bashar Assad’s regime massacred its citizens with chemical weapons.
The statement, by French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius, came the morning after Russia and China blocked a motion co-authored by France at the UN Security Council, which harshly condemned the use of chemical weapons and called on Syria to allow UN inspectors to look into Wednesday’s alleged attack.

A chronicle of narrow interests

Obama is a rather suspicious president well versed in safeguarding his presidency against all threats. His United States will act on the Syrian front, or anywhere else in the Middle East, only when Obama fears that a lack of involvement threatens his presidency. Obama's persistent war against al-Qaida, by use of any means at his disposal, does not fit with the image of an isolationist president, rather a president who acts determinedly only according to the narrow interests of the White House.
He is set on puling troops out of long-time war zones, because this will help improve his status in Washington. If he becomes convinced that chemical weapons were indeed used in Syria -- he will act in conjunction with other international elements.

Obama can't, or won't

Assad sees, and understands, that Obama doesn't want to, or can't, or simply doesn't know what to do. His foreign policy record is quite embarrassing. In the meantime, as Assad massacres his people and retains power in Syria, an Egyptian court decides to release deposed Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak from prison after clearing him of corruption charges. Mubarak is not finished with the justice system quite yet, but what sweet revenge for a man who gets to leave the man who usurped his seat, Mohammed Morsi, and Muslim Brotherhood spiritual leader Mohammed Badie, behind him in prison, and more importantly, his immediate successor former Field Marshal Mohamed Hussein Tantawi, now unemployed, who didn't protect him.
Much like the French revolution, the Egyptian revolution is bringing nothing but harm to the Egyptians.
And above all, Israeli officials should be asking themselves one simple question: What kind of message is Obama conveying to Iran with his conduct in the Middle East?

Jeffrey Goldberg: Does Anybody Care If Assad Uses Chemical Weapons Again?

The second question is, why would the Assad regime launch its biggest chemical attack on rebels and civilians precisely at the moment when a UN inspection team was parked in Damascus? The answer to that question is easy: Because Assad believes that no one -- not the UN, not President Obama, not other Western powers, not the Arab League -- will do a damn thing to stop him.
There is a good chance he is correct.

BBC Arabic reports on Syrian patients in Israeli hospitals – but not in Arabic

Unfortunately though, Sam Farah’s report does not appear to have made it to the Middle East page, the video page, or any other page on the BBC Arabic website. Isn’t this exactly the kind of news which the BBC claims to be providing for people who are unlikely to hear it from the media in their own countries?

Disinformation: ‘Pravda’ May Be Gone, but Now There’s ‘Russia Today’

While it’s unsurprising that the network’s coverage of the Syrian uprising would track closely with positions staked out by the Kremlin—for example, when Russia vetoed the U.N. Security Council resolution condemning the regime, an RT correspondent stressed that the resolution “could have sent an unbalanced signal to all sides of the conflict”—RT hasn’t simply promoted an anti-interventionist or anti-NATO viewpoint. Instead, it has frequently parroted Assad’s narrative by providing a platform for paranoiacs and conspiracy theorists to dispute that civilians are being killed by the regime, accuse America and Israel of being behind the deaths of Syrian civilians, and argue that the government in Damascus is a beacon of tolerance in the region.

Lebanon: Hezbollah Commander Assassinated

A leading supporter of the Hezbollah terrorist group was assassinated in Tripoli on Thursday.
Al-Mouri was gunned down by "masked men on motorbikes," along with a security official and a bystander, according to a security source quoted by the Lebanese Naharnet website.
The 40 year-old leader of a pro-Hezbollah Sunni militia was standing at the entrance to his home along with the two other men when the gunmen drove up and shot them.

The true face of the Muslim Brotherhood

If the Muslim Brotherhood members and supporters believe in peaceful protests and peaceful means of achieving goals, why did they burn churches down? Why did they incite hatred and violence through speeches in their camps in Rabaa Al-Adawiya and Al-Nahda? Why did their spokesperson say that the Muslim Brotherhood cannot control the anger of its members and supporters? Why did they use weapons against police stations and during their protests in different parts of the country over the last few days? There are images and videos explicitly showing some pro-Morsi supporters using weapons. United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay confirmed that, and added that Egyptians need to be reminded that they should prioritize Egypt, rather than their differing positions.
The West should wake up and look seriously at the dangerous situation in Egypt and the true face of the Muslim Brotherhood. Egyptians should establish ‘popular committees’ to protect their areas, as they did during the 25 January Revolution. The Muslim Brotherhood should denounce violence and accept that ousted president Morsi damaged both the country and democracy.

Morsi Supporters Call for 'Day of Martyrs' on Friday

Supporters of deposed Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi have no intention of backing down on their protests against the military.
With Friday, the day on which the largest protests usually take place following prayers at the mosques, just around the corner, a group of Morsi supporters is calling on Egyptians to hold "Friday of Martyrs" protests against the military.

US Egyptians plan rally at White House against 'Brotherhood terrorism'

The anti-Brotherhood protest is planned to gather at the White House and then move to The Washington Post offices, CNN, then to the headquarters of Islamic Council on American–Islamic Relations, which the group accused of being the Brotherhood's "embassy" in Washington. The rally's final destination is planned to be the Egyptian military attaché’s office in Washington where they intend to "praise the Egyptian army for its heroic stand against MB terrorism".
The protest organizers said they will provide buses to carry demonstrators from various Coptic churches in New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Maryland, Virginia, Pennsylvania, Delaware, South Carolina and North Carolina. They said the demonstrators will include "both Muslims and Copts."

Egyptian military chief orders army to rebuild every Coptic church burned by the Muslim Brotherhood

A political master stroke, although I don’t think this is aimed at pressuring Obama into not cutting U.S. aid. Sisi doesn’t care about that; the Saudis will pick up the slack if we yank our measly $2 billion. This is, I think, designed not only to solidify Christian support for the military in Egypt (which was already solid) but to signal to western Christians who are reading news stories about massacres that the military’s the protector of pluralism against Islamism. And that PR will help if/when Egypt needs a loan from the IMF, which might otherwise be inclined not to do business with an outfit that’s shooting protesters in the street.

‘Iran would barely retaliate if its nuclear program were attacked’

Iran is unlikely to unleash a war in response to a military strike on its nuclear facilities, Strategic Affairs and Intelligence Minister Yuval Steinitz said, estimating that possible retaliation would include not more than “two or three days of missile fire” against Israel and/or Western targets in the region, causing “very limited damage.”
Speaking to The Times of Israel earlier this week, Steinitz predicted that Iran’s new President Hasan Rouhani will offer minor goodwill steps to signal his willingness to compromise on the nuclear question, which he will follow up with demands to ease the sanctions while the regime continues to inch toward weapons capability. Steinitz urged the international community not to be fooled by Rouhani’s seemingly moderate rhetoric, and called instead for an internationally endorsed deadline that, if crossed, would be followed by the destruction of the country’s military facilities.

Iranian Schools Prepare Students for 'Drone Hunting'

A section on hunting and downing spy drones is to be included in the Iranian school curriculum, said Lieutenant Commander of the Basij Forces, Brigadier General Ali Fazli
Iran has already started teaching the course tp students in junior and senior high schools. Their two to three hour courses focus on ‘civil defense.’
The Iranian government has long sought a larger role for the military in the country's education system.

UK Islamic TV Station Fined for Encouraging Murder

Noor TV, an Islamic television station which broadcasts from the UK, has been fined £85,000 (more than $130,000) for comments inciting murder made by one of its presenters during a call-in show.
In December, Ofcom - Britain's media regulating body - ruled that the station had breached broadcasting codes after Presenter Allama Muhammad Farooq Nizami urged Muslims to murder anyone who disrespects the Islamic prophet Mohammed.
"There is no disagreement about this," he said at the time. "There is absolutely no doubt about it that the punishment for the person who shows disrespect for the Prophet is death."

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Lebanese rocket (shrapnel?) seems to have landed in residential area (photos, video)

The IDF stated:

A short time ago, civilians in Israel’s northern region faced rocket fire from Southern Lebanon. Three or four rockets were fired over Israeli territory. One of the rockets was intercepted by the Iron Dome missile defense system between the northern Israeli cities of Acre and Nahariya. The remainder of the rockets of fell outside of Israeli territory.

Kobi Snir took photo and video of where something landed. Not sure if it was part of the rocket, or shrapnel from Iron Dome, or what, but it looks like a residential area:

Plus this video showing police cordoning off the area:

Shrapnel hit that car, as YNet photos show.

And here is what he says is the Iron Dome interception (look to me like maybe afterward)

(h/t Israel Muse)

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Julio Iglesias to play in an apartheid state tonight

Two weeks ago, Julio Iglesias played a concert in Caesarea, Israel. The BDS crowd protested, as usual, to no avail and the concert was a smash.

But tonight Iglesias is playing in a country that has killed thousands of Palestinians. This country has a population that is majority Palestinian but they are ruled by a minority group that discriminates against them. While many of the Palestinians are citizens, hundreds of thousands of them had their citizenship stripped from them some 25 years ago, and many others who have lived there for over four decades are still barred from citizenship. Even today many some have lost their citizenship - and what rights they had.

The country, of course, is Jordan.

More recently, Jordan has either placed severe restrictions specifically on Palestinian Syria refugees from entering or traveling around the country, while allowing non-Palestinian Syrians to have more freedoms.

(Jordan also ethnically cleansed Jews from its territory and its law specifically banned Jews who had lived in Judea and Samaria before 1948 from becoming citizens. Jordan is probably the only country to specifically exclude a class of Jews from being citizens in its nationality law. Just sayin'.)

But there has not been one peep of protest to Iglesias from the people who claim to be pro-Palestinian, those who claim to be against apartheid and discrimination. No letters, no Facebook campaigns, nothing. Jordanian apartheid doesn't matter to them. On his Facebook page, under the announcement of the concert, not a single person protested.

Even worse, Jordan is seemingly using Iglesias to whitewash their own awful human rights record:

"Through the Amman Citadel Festival… we hope to promote Jordan as a hub for art and culture… and make it a world class destination," an FJF statement quoted the NGO's chairman, Isam Salfiti, as saying.

How can these paragons of human rights who support boycotting Israel be silent when a country that treats its Palestinian Arab citizens worse than Israel does is hosting such a prominent concert?

Oh, I forgot. King Abdullah isn't Jewish.

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Egypt arrests Palestinians, keeps Rafah closed (update)

Today is the fourth consecutive day of the Rafah crossing being completely closed by Egypt.

Still no flotillas to Egypt to protest this siege.

Meanwhile, the Egyptian security forces continue to arrest Palestinian Arabs in the Sinai on suspicion of terrorism:

North Sinai Security Directorate forces arrested Egyptians and Palestinians in Arish over suspected involvement in an earlier attack on the city's civil defense building.

Four Egyptians and five Palestinians were arrested in the sweeping operation.

The suspects were arrested inside a mosque near the meteorological authority building, close to al-Nasr Mosque, a supposed haven for jihadi groups in Arish.

Authorities claimed the four Egyptians had been drafted to attack army and police troops in North Sinai.

The Sinai Peninsula has witnessed escalating attacks against army and police since the overthrow of former President Mohamed Morsy. Attacks are largely blamed on extremist groups in the region.

The army said Tuesday it detained 11 suspected terrorist elements, including two Palestinians.

Given the current mess in Egypt, it is impossible to know whether these Gazans are terrorists or if they are just caught up in the army's crackdown on Islamists (and popular opinion against Gaza.) What is clear is that no "pro-Palestinian" group is making much of a stink over this.

UPDATE: Meanwhile, Gazans are protesting - the Israeli "blockade." (h/t Jonathan Schanzer)

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Those pesky red lines (ElderToon)

The Arab world notices very quickly when the US makes a promise and then ignores it. And irrespective of the wisdom of making such statements to begin with, the loss of respect for the US has consequences for generations to come.

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How Technion dips an apple in honey (VIDEO)

I was hoping for something more robotic, but still cute:

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Turkish police beat, threaten to rape detainees

From Hurriyet Daily News, during the Gezi demonstrations, but I don't recall seeing it anywhere:

What you will read below is extremely disturbing. It is the firsthand impressions of a Boğaziçi (Bosphorus) University student who was detained by police in connection with the Gezi Park incidents in Istanbul.

The entry you will read below came through the Internet. It was on the Facebook page of the person narrating. It was also in Hürriyet columnist Yalçın Bayer’s web version of his column. It was sent to Yalçın Bayer by Professor Işık Aytaç, again from Bosphorus University, as the account of her student Erkan Yolalan, who shared his story on his Facebook page....

“Last night (June 3, 2013) around 9 p.m. I was detained in Beşiktaş, at traffic lights on Barbaros Avenue. I was not involved in any action like swearing or throwing stones. They took me in bending my arm the moment they saw me. Some friends of mine saw on TV how I was taken into custody. Then hell began.

“After crossing the lights in the direction of the seaside, while I was at the edge of the platform where the IETT bus stops are at the seaside, any policeman who was there and any riot police squad member (çevik kuvvet) who saw me started kicking and punching me. For about 100-150 meters, in other words, all the way to the Kadıköy ferry station, whoever was present there was kicking and punching. Insults and curses such as ‘Are you the ones to save this country, mother f***, sons of ****,’ never ended. I could not count how many people hit me before I reached the detention bus.

“Just as I was taken near the buses, a few policemen called from behind a bus, ‘Bring him here.’ They took me behind the bus and started kicking and punching me there. I learned later that because of the cameras they took me behind the bus to beat me.

“When I was inside the detention bus (İETT) the lights were out, and I heard a girl’s voice begging inside the bus: ‘I did not do anything, sir.’ I could not even see who was hitting me as I was taken inside the bus and after I was in the bus. The only thing I was able to do in the dark was to cover my head. Curses and insults continued. I sat. Everyone who was passing near me was hitting me. I got up and went to a corner. They wanted me to take a seat again. I told them everyone who passed by was hitting me when I was seated.

They again swore, slapped and punched me and made me sit.

“They were hitting the girl and throttling her. A civilian policeman whose name is İsmail said exactly this to the girl, ‘I will bend you over and f*** you right now.’ [He – Erkan Yolalan- later added that this policeman İsmail also said, “Now that it is dark and the lights are off I will ****”]

“And the response of the girl was heartbreaking. With a low voice, she could only say ‘Yes, sir.’

“And next, we, the three people present at the bus, were forced to shout: ‘I love the Turkish police. I love my country.’ They made us yell this again and again ordered us to make it ‘louder, louder.’ The insults and beating did not come to an end.

“The atmosphere seemed a bit calmer, but this time they brought another young person. The guy’s nose was broken. When I asked him why he didn’t protect his face, he told me ‘Two people held me by force and a third person punched my nose three times.’ From time to time there were others brought in.

“A young person named Mustafa from Bahçeşehir University was brought then. Twenty policemen from the riot squad had attacked him, and he looked too weak even to stand up. Slapping and punching him near the detention bus was not enough for them, they hit his head with a helmet. That was not enough either, they hit his head on the bus window. They took him inside the bus while continuously hitting him. His hands were cuffed from behind; his head was bleeding; they made him sit on the floor.
[...]

“Once we were at the police station, an army of lawyers was waiting for us. And the policemen now were talking to us on polite terms.

The columnist goes on to predict what will happen:

Note to international readers: Do you know what will happen? This person Erkan will be terrorized with scores of lawsuits filed against him by the policemen in question, all testifying that he attacked them first. The public prosecutor will process these cases much faster, even before the cases against them begin. Collecting the evidence will take ages. The guy and all the others on that detention bus and any others testifying for him will be found guilty and will be given jail sentences. Earmark this paragraph for future reference.

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8/21 Links Part 2: Best of Latma Pt 2, PA Claim US Guaranteed Preconditions, Warsaw Uprising in Color

From Ian:

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Latma: Best of the Tribal Update, part 2, with closing song


Palestinian and Israeli negotiators hold clandestine talks in Jerusalem

Justice Minister Tzipi Livni, Israel’s chief envoy to peace talks, met clandestinely Tuesday morning with Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat at Jerusalem’s King David Hotel, Israeli officials said. A second meeting, which took place Tuesday evening at an undisclosed location in Jerusalem, included Washington’s point man Martin Indyk, the officials said.

US letter guaranteed our preconditions, PA negotiator says

The Palestinians would not have returned to the negotiating table with Israel were it not for an American letter of assurances guaranteeing their main negotiating preconditions, chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat said on Tuesday.
In a lengthy interview with Nazareth-based A-Shams radio, Erekat said that the US had assured Palestinians in writing that talks would recognize the pre-1967 lines as the basis of a Palestinian state; would deal with all core issues (Jerusalem, refugees, borders, security and water); would take place within a six- to nine-month timetable; and would not allow for any provisional or interim solutions before a final status agreement was signed. Erekat also said that an American-Israeli agreement existed regarding settlements, but did not elaborate on its contents.

Embracing the Costanza Doctrine

Unfortunately, this is nothing new. We have now had five years of an administration whose defective instincts have resulted in consistently flawed U.S. foreign policy behavior.
I do not believe we can afford another three more years of this. President Obama and his team need to develop a new approach for dealing with foreign policy matters.
My humble suggestion is as follows -- it is time for President Obama, and his administration, to adopt the Costanza Doctrine. It comes from the television comedy show Seinfeld. The salient principle of the Costanza Doctrine is the statement -- "(i)f every instinct you have is wrong, then the opposite would have to be right."

Video shows IDF under attack during Jenin arrest

The IDF published footage Tuesday of an alleged Palestinian terrorist’s arrest, which took place in the West Bank city of Jenin before dawn and resulted in the death of a 22-year-old demonstrator. The grainy video appears to show bullets being fired at the Israeli soldiers prior to the shooting of Muhammad Anis, providing support to the IDF’s claim that the soldiers were threatened and, consequently, returned fire.

SWC Blasts ‘Horrific Anti-Semitic Character’ Roger Waters as ‘Disconnected From Reality’ After BDS Call During Peace Talks

Rabbi Abraham Cooper, associate dean of the Simon Wiesenthal Center, sharply criticized Pink Floyd musician Roger Waters Tuesday after Waters “doubled down” on his support for Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) against Israel with a new call for supporters to embrace a “cultural boycott of Israel.”

Tom Jones Urged to Cancel Concert in 'Apartheid' Israel

Welsh singer Tom Jones, who is set to perform in Tel Aviv in October, is facing, as many others have before him, a campaign by anti-Israel activists who are calling on him to cancel the concert.
According to Wales Online, a branch of the Palestine Solidarity Campaign, a group which accuses Israel of ethnic cleansing and war crimes, has posted an online petition calling for Jones to cancel his October 26th appearance in Tel Aviv’s Nokia Stadium.

Fatah continues to glorify Saddam Hussein

One of Fatah's official Facebook pages chose to glorify Saddam Hussein recently by posting the following picture with the caption: "How many people love this hero?"
The picture got 1,439 Facebook "likes" and 111 people wrote words of praise in the comments section.
This is not the first time that Saddam Hussein has been honored by Fatah. Earlier this year, Palestinian Media Watch documented that the same Fatah Facebook page posted two pictures of Saddam Hussein portraying him as a hero:

Kiwi Jews slam 'tasteless' Nazi memorabilia auction

The auction of pre-1945 German military and Nazi items were up for bidding on Wednesday at Hayward's Auction House, according to the report.
The selection includes belts, pins, helmets and Nazi flags, the latter two which were expected to rake in between $500 and $600 for the anonymous vendor.
According to the Otago Daily Times, Australasian Union of Jewish Students Dunedin branch president Ben Isaacs responded to news of the auction, saying that the sale of anything with a swastika is harmful to the memory of those who died as a result of Nazi persecution.

Photographer apologizes for nude Jewish cemetery shoot

Polish photographer Lukasz Szczygielski has apologized for conducting a photo shoot with a half-naked model at the Jewish cemetery in the southern Polish town of Checiny.
Szczygielski explained that he wanted to draw attention to the neglected cemetery. “I wanted to draw attention to the neglect of the place. The cemetery is forgotten, he told Gazeta Wyborcza.

‘Jerusalem’ rejected as baby name

The city of Brussels refused to register the name of a locally born Israeli baby because Jerusalem does not appear on a list of approved names for children born in the country.
Hagar and Alinadav Hyman, Israelis who have lived and worked in Brussels for the last three years, decided to name their first-born Alma Jerusalem.

Kurdish-Israelis Want Representation in Upcoming Conference

The Kurds are the largest indigenous Middle Eastern nation without a state. Their homeland, Kurdistan, is currently occupied by Turkey, Syria, Iran and Iraq. However, recent years have seen progress in the Kurdish struggle for self-determination: Kurds in Iraq enjoy autonomy under the Kurdish Regional Government (KRG), Kurds in Syria have secured a degree of autonomy in Syria, and Kurds in Turkish-occupied Kurdistan are currently engaged in negotiations for greater rights.

Jordanian PM: Sell future desalinated water to Israel, purchase more Kinneret water

The Kingdom of Jordan intends to sell Israel water produced by a future Jordanian desalination plant, in return for the ability to purchase an increased amount of fresh water from Israel's Kinneret reservoir, Prime Minister Abdullah Ensour declared on Monday.(h/t Zvi)

What Israeli drips did for the world

When the history of the decades-old Green Revolution in Asia and Africa is written, Israel’s Netafim — the company that brought drip irrigation to the world — will be prominently featured.
Now, a new Netafim website documents how the company helped create the revolution, which enabled countries like India to greatly expand their crop yields and better feed their burgeoning populations.

Tel Aviv monument to remember homosexuals persecuted by Nazis

Tel Aviv is going ahead with a plan to install a monument to the gay community persecuted by the Nazis, memorializing thousands of homosexual men who were murdered in death camps.
The memorial is designed to be a concrete triangular slab embossed with a smaller pink triangle, reminiscent of the symbol that the Nazis forced gay men to wear on their clothes.

New Book Profiles Jewish Nazi Hunter Who Aided Capture of Auschwitz Commander Rudolph Höss

A new book, recently published, profiles a little known yet instrumental figure in the capture of notorious Nazi, head of the Auschwitz concentration camp, commander Rudolph Höss, the UK’s Daily Mail reported.
Hanns Alexander was a German-born Jew who moved to the UK in 1936, served in the British Army in World War II and, unbeknownst to many until his death in 2006, when the details of his past were revealed in a eulogy, he worked as a translator for a team of Nazi hunters in 1945 that brought Höss to trial from which he ultimately received a death sentence for his crimes against humanity.

Warsaw Uprising brought to life in stunning color film

Rebels crouch behind barricades, dodging enemy fire. Rivers of fire belch from flamethrowers. Women and children dash across bombed-out ruins. Men pull a corpse out of rubble.
The scenes are as riveting as any Hollywood war movie. But they are snippets of historical footage from the 1944 Warsaw Uprising, enhanced by modern coloring and sound techniques — and turned into a film.
The only purely fictional elements are voiceovers presenting an imagined narrative that stitches together the footage: Two brothers scour the streets of the Polish city tasked with filming the 1944 rebellion of Warsaw residents against their Nazi occupiers, commenting on what they witness, from soup kitchens to scenes of destruction.

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Al Aqsa collapse! But only in English. (UPDATE)

From the English section of the Al-Ray News Agency:

Gaza, Alray - Al-Aqsa Foundation and Cultural Heritage Organization said that an area collapsed near the western wall of the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem late Tuesday.

The collapse happened near the Bab as Silsila, on the western part of the mosque, according to an eyewitness.

"It is the second collapse near the western wall in 5 years," Cum'a Usayle, an eyewitness said.

Usayle told Anadolu Agency, "The collapse has caused a deep hole there. It is dangerous for the Al-Aqsa Mosque. It poses danger especially for children and women."

No security precautions around the area have been taken by Israeli officials so far. There is also no statement about the event.

Al-Aqsa Foundation and Cultural Heritage Organization accused Israel of paving the way for demolishing the Al-Aqsa Mosque by building new settlements and digging dozens of tunnels.

Unfortunately, no photos of this collapse. I'm always amazed that none of these "eyewitnesses" ever seem to have their phones with cameras on them to document these Zionist crimes.

But certainly the Al Aqsa Foundation web page will have this story, right? Well, no, it doesn't.

Surely the Arabic al-Ray site will have more details! Um, no, they don't.

Arabic Twitter users must be in an uproar, right? Well, outside of the "OccPal" account that took the information from Al Ray - nothing. (Turkish media is also picking it up.)

Just a single, seemingly fake story. One that very possibly will be on hundreds of websites by tomorrow.

Too bad!

UPDATE: Now there are photos are the Al Aqsa Foundation site. Here's the best one:

However, this hole is not on the Temple Mount, but in someone's house nearby (they say 20 meters from the Mount, near the Chain Gate) My understanding is that Israel has been digging on the southwest corner, nowhere near any houses and not near that gate, although the older revelations of existing tunnels do pass near that point.

See also My Right Word.

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Sudanese experts are unanimous :Everything is Israel's fault

It is remarkable how many academic conferences are held in places that have no reputation for anything academic.

Experts Say Events in Egypt Resultant from Western, Zionist Interventions
Khartoum - A number of political experts and analysts were unanimous in the opinion that is the result of western and Zionist interventions aiming to curb Islamic advancement in Arab countries.

Israel is involved in the changes that have taken place in Egypt recently so as to reinforce its interest in the Queens agreement which obliges Egyptian businessmen to commit to use 15% of Israeli crude in any Egyptian industrial project, said professor Hassan Makki, a Horn of Africa Affairs Expert, speaking at a forum titled "the Egyptian crisis and its developments" at the Epistemological Pillars Center.

He went on to say that Israel, for the previous reasons, worked to eliminate Islamic rule in Egypt, to protect its projects and interests. He affirmed that Israel's interventions have eroded Egypt's leading position which it enjoyed before the year 2000.

We all remember the "Queens Agreement" for Egypt to use all that Israeli crude oil, don't we? I mean, Israel has a well-known surplus of crude, and needs to dump it somewhere, so they forced Egypt to buy it. Don't you remember? Back in 19E7, or thereabouts. Hassan Makki is an expert, after all.

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