Elder Of Ziyon - Israel News

Wednesday, March 12, 2014

Gaza rockets still being shot, but most are landing in Gaza

JPost reports:

A rocket fired from the Gaza Strip exploded in an open area in the Sha'ar Hanegev Regional Council on Tuesday night.

The projectile triggered a Color Red rocket alert across the area, before falling in an uninhabited area. It failed to cause injuries or damages.

Yes, even though they don't make news unless they cause damage or deaths, they are still being fired.

The latest Gaza NGO Safety Office report, covering the period from February 20-March 5, shows that (beside test firings) Gazans fired seven rockets towards Israel in that timeframe.

However, out of those seven, six of them landed in Gaza!

That is an astonishing 83% failure rate for rockets, by far the worst I have ever seen. Normally it is in the 30-40% range.

Together with the "work accidents" that we have been seeing, it can mean a few things:

1) All a coincidence.
2) More amateurs are trying to get involved in terrorism.
3) Raw materials for explosives and rockets are becoming mysteriously unstable.

It shouldn't be too hard to start a rumor that someone sabotaged the bomb-making materials in Gaza. Could be fun!

UPDATE: Over 60 rockets today did make it to Israel.

Northeastern U suspends anti-Israel group

From Max Blumenthal, writing in one of the few media outlets that still bother to publish him, Mondoweiss:

On March 7, members of Northeastern University’s Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) were informed by the school’s Center for Student Involvement that their chapter had been suspended for at least a year.

In a letter sent to the SJP chapter and provided to me by Max Geller, a second year Northeastern University School of Law student who actively campaigns with SJP, the school’s Director of the Center for Student Involvement, Jason Campbell-Foster, offered a litany of charges against the students. At the top of the list was the SJP’s February 24 distribution of notices across Northeastern campuses that mocked the sort of eviction notices slapped on Palestinian homes slated for Israeli demolition – an awareness-raising tactic increasing in popularity among SJP chapters nationwide.

“You have not shown a concerted effort to improve your practices and educate your members on how to properly operate your organization within the boundaries of university policy,” Northeastern’s Campbell-Foster wrote.

According to Campbell-Foster’s letter, all current members of Northeastern SJP’s current executive board are permanently banned from serving on any future board in the organization. Further, SJP members must undergo a strict regimen of trainings led by university administrators as a condition for reinstatement.

On the morning of February 25, two days after Northeastern SJP members distributed mock eviction notices throughout campus dormitories, all Northeastern students received an email from Robert Jose, Northeastern’s Associate Dean for Cultural and Residential Life. “We do not condone any behavior that causes members of our community to feel targeted and/or intimidated,” Jose wrote.

Jose urged students to express “how this has impacted [them]” by contacting school administrators and the Hillel House of Northeastern, an explicitly pro-Israel Jewish communal organization committed to countering SJP-related activism.

A letter that appeared almost simultaneously on Northeastern’s Hillel’s website announced, “Rather than seeking to prompt dialogue, the fake eviction notices alarmed and intimidated students in their homes, in clear violation of Northeastern policy. We are in communication with Student Affairs regarding this incident, who have been quick to respond to student concerns. The administration is working with the Northeastern University Police Department to conduct a thorough investigation.”

At 10 AM that same day, members of Northeastern SJP received phone calls and visits from campus police officers. “All of the sudden the school was accusing us of an act of criminality for simply [an] act of leafleting,” remarked Geller. “A special investigation was launched for what the university claimed was a petty handbook violation and NYPD-style tactics were used against students. It was so disproportionate to what happened and a complete misappropriation of university funds.”

Yeah, that's what is upsetting them. University funds.

The SJP Northeastern website's description of what happened is hysterical in its attempt to be treated as the victims in this incident, as they wildly spray accusations of racism and discrimination at their university:

With profound disappointment and righteous indignation Northeastern University Students for Justice in Palestine announces it has been suspended as an organization. SJP is disappointed because Northeastern’s claims of creating a diverse learning environment that encourages the free exchange of ideas and promotes Academic Freedom are impossible to reconcile with the university’s decision to suppress our speech and suspend our political group. As if banning our activities from campus and denying us all use of campus resources wasn’t outrageous enough, the university is pursuing expulsion-level sanctions for two students—all for participation in a mock eviction action. SJP is furious to report the only individuals to face our school’s opaque disciplinary process are two young women of color; none of the white or male participants have faced any charges. This unprecedented ban and appalling prosecutions are the latest attempt by the university to suppress pro-Palestine speech, and continues the university’s disturbing history of enacting injustice.

...The university claims to value academic freedom while suspending SJP, but its hypocrisy is nothing new. Consider how its actions have impacted others. Was the university fair to Roxbury residents, whose families –particularly families of color—have been displaced by student gentrification? When students from around the world are invited to gather on-campus, can they truly feel “welcomed” in the Raytheon amphitheater, named for a U.S. corporate war profiteer? Can the university claim to value all students’ health, when the student health plan explicitly discriminates against trans students? Is the university committed to just working conditions and wages, while it seeks to thwart the 800 adjunct professors who aspire to unionize? The university often promises fairness and impartiality, but its actions reflect truly disturbing values. Northeastern University consistently supports the interests of the dominant and powerful, at the expense of the marginalized—and rather than extend academic freedom to students who criticize these interests, SJP has been criminalized and censored.

Notice how they do everything possible to ignore or minimize the actual disgusting act that they did - putting out threatening leaflets, a gimmick that has already been widely denounced in other universities. Instead they try mightily to pretend that the university is a racist institution for protecting its students.

This has not been a good year for anti-Israel forces on campus. All indications are that this year's "apartheid week" events have been poorly attended and barely reported.

The haters are now on the defensive, and revealing themselves as whiny crybabies rather than serious critics of Israel. Thanks to reactions like the SJP's above, this trend will only accelerate.

It is obvious that the Palestinian Arab habits of playing the victim, blaming everything on others and refusing to take responsibility for their own actions is attractive to a tiny minority of people who would join their bandwagon rather than actually working to bring a solution. Only the most unstable student would ever consider joining a group that releases such a statement as the screed SJP-NE released.

(h/t Jaime)

Major Sephardic rabbi permits Jews ascending to Temple Mount

Rabbi Meir Mazuz, a major Sephardic leader, has issued a ruling that under certain circumstance Jews would be allowed to visit the Temple Mount.

He is the first major rabbi from outside the religious-Zionist circle that has allowed this.

The Kipa website quotes that he answered a question about the issue last week, saying that it is allowed halachically, although there are practical issues with knowing the exact parts of the Mount that one is allowed to visit, and one needs expert advice on the matter.

He also said that Jews should not bow down towards the site of the Holy of Holies when on the Mount because it would appear as if they are bowing to the mosque at the Dome of the Rock.

Mazuz was close with former chief rabbi Ovadia Yosef, who had prohibited Jews from visiting the Temple Mount.

While this story did not get very much coverage in Israel, Arabic websites are fuming with multiple stories on the topic. It was denounced by a Christian and Muslim Arab association, saying this gives permission for Jews to "storm" the site.

03/11 Links Pt2: 3rd Anniversary of the Fogel Family Massacre; More criticism of Judis, TNR

From Ian:

Three Years Later: Fogel Family Massacre Commemorated in Itamar

The three-year Hebrew anniversary of the infamous Fogel family massacre, which took place in the West Bank town of Itamar, was memorialized on Monday, Israel’s Channel 2 reported.
An official commemoration was held at Mishkan Ehud, a study and prayer complex built in honor of the slain family members.
On March 11th, 2011, two teenage cousins from a nearby Arab village scaled the security fence surrounding Itamar. They crawled through the window of the Fogel home and, once inside, murdered parents Udi and Ruth, and their children: 11-year-old Yoav, 4-year-old Elad and 3-month-old Hadas.
Three children survived: 14-year-old Tamar, 10-year-old Roi and 4-year-old Yishai.

Ex-TNR Editor Blasts Magazine for Anti-Israel Writer

Martin Peretz, the long-time editor-in-chief of the New Republic until 2010 and owner until 2012, slammed the magazine on Sunday for publishing an excerpt of an anti-Israel book written by senior editor John Judis.
TNR was known for its liberal, pro-Israel editorial line under Peretz’s 35-year stewardship. However, it has moved away from this position under its new owner and editor, Mark Zuckerberg’s college roommate Chris Hughes.
The magazine recently published a chapter of Judis’s new book, “Genesis: Truman, American Jews and the Origins of the Arab/Israeli Conflict,” which reportedly questions the legitimacy of Israel’s founding and attributes American support for the Jewish state to pressure from the Israel lobby.

‘Summit to Reassess the U.S. – Israel ‘Special Relationship” Held at National Press Club, C-Span Re-Broadcasts

A first-ever conference called the “National Summit to Reassess the U.S. – Israel ‘Special Relationship’” was held at the National Press Club, in Washington, D.C. on Friday, and the event is now being re-broadcast on C-Span.
The conference echoed many of the controversial themes of the Stephen Walt and John Mearsheimer book on ‘The Israel Lobby.’ Walt was a speaker on one of its panels.
The program included sessions, such as “How does the Israel lobby influence Congress?”, “Does Israel and its lobby exercise too much influence on U.S. decisions to wage war in the Middle East?”, “Does the ‘special relationship’ transcend rule of law?”, “History: How did the ‘special relationship’ come to be?”, “Has the lobby captured political parties and news media?”, and “Is Israel really a U.S. ally?”

Author Warns of Racist Movement in Israel Looking for ‘Right to Kill Non-Jewish Children’

Author and syndicated columnist Allan Brownfeld, speaking at Institute for Research’s Middle East Policy conference on Friday, warned the audience of the rise of “racism” in Israel against non-Jews. He said that there is a popular movement in Israel which takes its cues from a popular book, “financed by the Israeli government,” arguing for the right of Jews to kill non-Jews. Brownfeld added that this extremism dates back to early 19th Century Europe.
“In Israel itself, there is a growth of racism,” Brownfeld began. “There is a growth of religious extremism. (h/t Effect)

Big work accident!

From Ma'an:

Four People were killed and six others suffered injuries after an explosion in Beit Hanoun in the northern Gaza Strip, a medical official said.

Ashraf al-Qidra said that Mohammad Tayseer al-Hamdeen, 26, Bilal al-Hamdeen, Jafaar Odwaan and a fourth unidentified man were killed in the explosion.

Six others were injured including two children and a woman in critical condition, he added.

The four were all affiliated with Hamas' al-Qassam Brigades, and they arrived dead at the hospital, a Ma’an reporter said.

The house was severely damaged, and the cause of the explosion was not immediately clear.

Earlier, an Israeli airstrike killed three Palestinians in the southern Gaza Strip, the same official said.

Al-Qidra told Ma'an that three resistance fighters were killed by the airstrike in southeast Khan Younis near the Sufa crossing.

Palestine Today says that the explosion was on the third floor of a family house. It helpfully adds that the bodies of the "martyrs" were "cut to shreds."

This is the photo they published, although they sometimes recycle file footage without identifying it.

Felesteen reports of a separate explosion at a Gaza City corner market that injured four, including a child.

I think Hamas has to find a better supplier of explosives. The current batch seems to be too dangerous. Where's the Gaza consumer protection agency when they need it?

Anyway, things are really busy in the "playground of death" today!

Introducing the Open Muslim Students Association

Since Purim is coming up....

As a result of the Open Hillel initiative, where the Jewish student groups throughout North America will invite anti-Israel speakers to offer talks in the name of open communication, the Muslim Students Association of North America has been inspired to start its own Open MSA group.

To kick off the new Open MSA, the Princeton Muslim Students Association will hold a special seminar to be taught by David Wilder, right-wing settler and advocate of Israeli rule over all the territories.

"We are quite excited to be on the cutting edge of Muslim openness," said Sarah Qari, president of Princeton MSA. "We respect all viewpoints and it is only natural that we should be able to listen to what the evil usurper settler Wilder has to say, while keeping an open mind," she added.

"Open MSA does not adhere to any particular political point of view, and all viewpoints are welcome - even those of genocidal Jews!" Qari stated

Other similar programs are being planned throughout the US and Canada.

The Yale Muslim Students Association will host a special performance of the Batsheva Dance Company. "There is no reason for us not to enjoy the beauty of the arts that are being performed by the hated Zionist enemy," says Didem Kaya, president of the Yale MSA board, as he prepared the stun grenades that will be tossed on stage as a sign of appreciation.

The University of Texas MSA has joined the Open MSA bandwagon as well, inviting Rabbi Yehuda Glick - who advocates Jewish access to the Temple Mount - to speak. "His opinions about his desire to destroy the Al Aqsa Mosque and replace it with a so-called Third Temple are very important to us. And Glick doesn't have to worry about a thing - we will provide the security ourselves!" said president Usama Khan.

Omar Zaki, chairman of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), said that he welcomed the Open MSA initiative, saying it was a natural extension of Islam's openness to others' ideas. "Islam is quite accepting of others. To be honest, I was reluctant to join the 'open' movement, but then I read the words of Rashid Khalidi, where he said there should be no political litmus test on speakers and artists. Inshallah, we will invite Robert Spencer to keynote our next annual conference," he declared.

Open Hillel spokesperson Naomi Dann from Vasser was still cautious about the new Open MSA initiative. "I don't know about this. The people they are inviting are a bit outside the mainstream, if you know what I mean," she said. "I mean, David Wilder? Yehuda Glick? As open-minded Jews, we would never consider listening to what they have to say!" she declared.

"I'll be happy to give Open MSA a list of acceptable, righteous Jews for them to invite, if they want."

03/11 Links Pt1: Why Abbas Will (Again) Say No; 66% of Israeli Jews don't trust Kerry on security

From Ian:

Khaled Abu Toameh: Why Abbas Will (Again) Say No

Now Abbas is going to mislead Obama into thinking that he is coming to meet with him not only as the "rightful" leader of the Palestinians but also as a representative of the Arab world. Never mind that the Arab League, which issued the statement, is considered extremely inefficient and incompetent and that no one in the Arab world takes it seriously.
But the Obama Administration does not seem to care. Obama and Kerry seem to want a deal at any cost, even if it is with a president who lost his legitimacy many years ago and even if the deal will unravel the day after.
Abbas also believes he can say no to Obama because the U.S. Administration will not take any retaliatory measures against the Palestinian Authority. The Palestinians do not take Obama seriously, especially in light of his failure in dealing with the crises in the Arab world and Ukraine.

Arafat Recognized Jewish State, Why Won't Abbas?

The Arab League is endorsing Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas' refusal to accept Israel as a Jewish state as a part of any peace agreement.
But in taking this position, Abbas – considered by the Obama administration to be a moderate Palestinian leader with whom a deal can be struck – is not going as far as his predecessor. Yasser Arafat recognized Israel as a Jewish state at least twice. In an undated video, Arafat said the PNC (Palestine National Council) accepted two states. One Palestinian, and a "Jewish state... Israel."
"The PNC has accepted two states. Palestine state and Jewish state... Israel."
Arafat also unequivocally accepted Israel's Jewish character during a 2004 interview. Asked whether Israel should endure as a Jewish state, Arafat's reply simply was, "Definitely."

Poll: Two-thirds of Israeli Jews don't trust Kerry on security

Sixty-six percent of Israeli Jews and 53% of Israeli Arabs do not trust US Secretary of State John Kerry to take Israel’s security into account in the American framework agreement he intends to reveal next month, according to the monthly Peace Index poll sponsored by the Israel Democracy Institute and Tel Aviv University, which was published Tuesday afternoon.
Thirty-one percent of Israeli Jews and 32% of Arab Israelis do trust Kerry to take into account Israel’s security. Among Israelis who consider themselves left-wing, the number was 79%.
Sixty-one percent of Jewish Israelis and 56% of Israeli Arabs believe that Kerry’s main motivation for reaching a framework agreement is a personal interest in making history as a statesman where others before him had failed. Only 22% of Jewish Israelis and 16% of Arab Israelis believe Kerry is motivated by honest concern for the future of the two parties. Eight percent of Jewish Israelis and 14% of Arab Israelis believe he is equally motivated by the chance to make history and concern the parties.

Gaza to run out of free fuel again, expect Israel to be blamed

Ma'an reported yesterday:

The last shipment of Qatar-donated diesel -- used to fuel the Gaza Strip's sole power plant -- is expected to run out within four or five days, a Palestinian official said Sunday.

The announcement comes after only around two months of steady electricity in the besieged coastal enclave, which suffers from a severe lack of fuel due to a seven-year-long economic blockade enforced jointly by Israel and Egypt.

Fathi al-Sheikh Khalil, deputy chairperson of the Gaza power authority, told Ma'an Sunday that the Qatari donation had helped operate two generators and made electricity available on the basis of eight hours on, eight hours off.

As the last of the fuel runs out, power availability will be reduced to six hours on, twelve hours off, as before the fuel was donated, Khalil said.

Yet only two paragraphs after blaming Israel (and Egypt) for Gaza's lack of fuel, the Gaza official freely admits why there really is a shortage:

"We asked the Ramallah government to provide Gaza's power plant with tax-free fuel because the money we collect in electricity bills isn't enough to buy fuel to run two generators," he said.

Nothing to do with Israel at all - it is the Hamas government being unable to pay the agreed-upon prices! If they pay, Israel can sell them all they need.

There is no blockade of fuel to Gaza from Israel. Media and NGOs that make this claim are lying.

I've documented this in detail since last November 1, when Gaza officials first announced that they don't want to pay regular prices for fuel.

Somehow Hamas finds the money to pay for monuments to terror, for weapons smuggling, and for other "essential" functions - but they can't find a way to pay for fuel. Because they have historically used the artificial fuel crises that they engineer to create heartbreaking photos of Gaza children in candlelight to pressure Israel and the PA. They couldn't care less about the welfare of their people.

And Hamas is secure in its knowledge that NGOs and the media will more often blame Israel (and, lately, Egypt) for its own cynical manipulation of their people.

"Jews control the President's breakfast and Supreme Court's music"

I know, it's almost Purim, but (just like the earlier story about Jews being behind triskaidekaphobia) this stuff is really being published in daily Arab newspapers.

JordanZad newspaper wrote up a typical Jewish/Masonic plot article, including quotes from antisemites about how US presidents bow down to Jews, and how the Jews have an entire government that is really running the US from behind the puppet government of the US Congress and executive branch. But as many times as I've seen this theme in Arab newspapers, they always manage to add their own amusing twists.

[The ADL] is headquartered in Chicago , the capital of crime and criminals, as you know, not only of America but of all the other countries of the world. Its main objective is to mute any voice of complaint about the Jews, using silenced pistols, and poison, and strangulation, and other methods that even Satan couldn't discover, and they control spy devices and control all sensitive facilities both official and popular, and they monitor every word uttered, every letter people write, and every image printed, and every film released, and every song written or composed, and they also have specialized equipment for defamation of undesirable celebrities....

You should know for sure that our battle with the Jews is not an ordinary battle; not a battle with creatures of flesh and blood only, but primarily a battle with the spiritual and intellectual powers which pollute our pristine pure waters. Here lies the danger: it is easier to fight your opponent man to man, and a weapon with a weapon!!! But the toughest fight is in the fields of thought and conscience!!! Especially if he is sneaking out to the minds and hearts of your children!!!!...

The American Jewish Committee is only one of several associations that is planning the official policy of the United States of America. They monitor everything that is said or written or published, and monitor churches, and attend religious classes for schools all from day one.

This committee oversees the president's breakfast, in addition to the selection of the clothes worn by members of Congress, and they choose the music heard by members of the Supreme Court and the Executive Office!!!!!

Fatah military leader assassinated in Lebanon

From Naharnet:

Unknown assailants on Monday assassinated a high-ranking Fatah Movement official in the Ain el-Hilweh Palestinian refugee camp near the southern city of Sidon.

“Fatah Movement official Brig. Gen. Jamil Zeidan died of his wounds after he was shot by unidentified gunmen in the al-Fawqani area,” state-run National News Agency said.

According to LBCI television, two masked gunmen riding a motorcycle opened fire at Zeidan.

A Fatah camp official told Agence France Presse that Zeidan was shot in front of his home.

"He was transferred to a health center but was pronounced dead on arrival," the official added, speaking to AFP on condition of anonymity.

A camp medic said Zeidan had been sprayed with at least 15 bullets.

Voice of Lebanon radio (100.5) said tensions surged and armed men deployed in the streets in the wake of the murder.

On February 2, Wissam Abul Kel, a member of Fatah, died after masked men shot him near the camp's grocery market.

Ain el-Hilweh, the largest Palestinian camp in the country, is home to about 50,000 refugees and is known to harbor extremists and fugitives.

Ma'an only refers to him as a "Lebanese national security forces general," nothing about him being a member of Fatah or even Palestinian.

Fatah-leaning media are surprisingly low-key, or are ignoring altogether, this assassination of a Fatah general.

The media rule of "no Jews, no news" seems to be holding up rather well in this case.

Meanwhile, Lebanese ministers are debating a Hezbollah demand to insert language about "resistance" to Israel in their ministerial policy statement. Because it is much better to pretend that Israel is a threat to Lebanon than to worry about the real problems facing Lebanon, such as a large part of it being controlled by Iran.

Hamas unveils a statue of a rocket (video)

Hamas unveiled a rocket-shaped statue Monday showcasing its capacity to strike arch-enemy Israel, as the Jewish state boasted its own haul of captured weapons it claims were bound for Gaza.

"Hamas managed to take the battle to the heart of the Zionist entity (Israel) after developing its rocket system, succeeding where many Arab armies had failed," said a leader of Hamas armed wing the Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades, flanked by masked fighters at the statue's unveiling.

The monument in Gaza City features a life-size model of a large M75 rocket, named in honour of Qassam Brigades founding member Ibrahim al-Maqadma -- who was assassinated by Israel in 2003 -- and alluding to its range of 75 kilometres.

03/10 Links Pt2: Cleric Claims Einstein was a Shiite; Israeli Cruise Passengers Denied Entry to Tunisia

From Ian:

If only there were more people who were really pro-Palestinian. . .

In a way, all of this anti-Israel focus in the “pro-Palestinian” movement is not surprising, because Palestinian leaders have, for years, employed the propaganda tactics of totalitarian regimes during and surrounding World War II. Mussolini blamed Italy’s problems on worldwide communist plots, and Stalin blamed the Soviet Union’s problems on Trotsky, his exiled political enemy. Thus the peoples of Italy and Eastern Europe were convinced that their poor domestic situations were less the fault of their governments than the fault of outside forces. They were given someone convenient to blame for their problems, an “other,” so that they did not turn their criticism on their own governments. Likewise, Palestinian leaders have blamed Israel for the problems that the Palestinian Authority has perpetuated for decades. They have aimed to manufacture a single “Palestinian cause,” one that always opposes Israel and almost never creates space for talk of a two-state solution that would actually end the occupation. The “cause” does not address the corruption of Palestinian politicians, the Palestinian government’s failure to support democracy or freedom of the press, sharp divisions between Palestinian factions, issues of poverty, issues of oppression of Palestinian people throughout the Arab world, and numerous other pressing problems that huge segments of the Palestinian people are forced to face every day. The global community has picked up on this propaganda narrative and, attracted to the simplistic underdog story that it tells, lent enormous support to the “Palestinian cause.”

Israelis Detained on Board Norwegian Jade as Cruise Ship Docked in Port of Tunis

Israeli tourists were denied the right to disembark from the Norwegian Jade, a vessel operated by the Norwegian Cruise Line, when it stopped in the Port of Tunis, Tunisia recently, Jewish human rights organization B’nai Brith Canada said on Sunday.
As passengers prepared to get off the ship to visit the North African republic, the Israelis were quietly told that they were not welcomed by the Tunisian Government, the group said in a statement.
The cruise line did not advise the passengers in advance that Israeli tourists would be confined to the ship for the stop. Other Jewish passengers were unaware that their coreligionists were being detained, since no public announcements were made. They were outraged when it became known, B’nai Brith Canada said.

One Week After Russia's Crimean Invasion, US Imposes Travel Sanctions...Against Israelis

At the same time the US State Department is relaxing entry requirements to visa applicants with Islamist terrorist connections, and reassuring President Putin of Russia that any sanctions against travel to the US placed upon those responsible for Russia's invasion Ukraine will be limited to no more than a "few dozen" named individuals, it is dramatically increasing its rejection rate of Israelis seeking visas to visit the US.
While the State Department denies it, Israeli officials now suspect their country is being deliberately sanctioned as part of an unannounced administration policy to punish the Jewish state. This week their fears were publicly shared by none other than administration ally NY Senator Charles Schumer, who, in a letter to Secretary of State John Kerry, demanded an end to the “State Department policy of categorically denying young Israelis tourist visas that makes it nearly impossible for any young Israeli to visit the U.S.”

Iranian cleric: Albert Einstein was Shiite Muslim

An Iranian cleric claims that the Albert Einstein, the great 20th century scientist who developed the Theory of Relativity, was a Shiitie Muslim, Israel Radio reported on Saturday.
The report cites a video by Ayatolla Mahadavi Kani, described as the head of the Assembly of Experts in the Islamic Republic of Iran, who says that there are documents proving the Jewish scientist embraced Shiite Islam and was an avid follower of Ja'far Al-Sadiq, an eighth-century Shi'i imam.
In the video, Kani quotes Einstein as saying that when he heard about the ascension of the prophet Mohammed, "a process which was faster than the speed of light," he realized "this is the very same relativity movement that Einstein had understood." (h/t dabney_c)