Elder Of Ziyon - Israel News

Wednesday, December 11, 2019

12/11 Links Pt1: Jersey City shooting suspect posted antisemitic, anti-police posts; An Unfair Attack on the JNF — From an Unlikely Source

From Ian:

One Suspect in Jersey City Carnage Posted Antisemitic Content Online, Officials Say

One of the suspects involved in Tuesday’s gun battle in Jersey City that left six people dead posted antisemitic and anti-police posts on social media, local officials said on Wednesday.

Investigators believe the attack was motivated by those sentiments, a law enforcement official familiar with the case told The New York Times on Wednesday.

Later on Wednesday, the suspects were named as David Anderson and Francine Graham. According to NBC New York, Anderson was a “one-time follower of the Black Hebrew Israelite movement.”

The developments came after Jersey City officials, including Mayor Steve Fulop, revealed that the kosher supermarket where most of the carnage took place had been “deliberately targeted,” though initial reports on Tuesday did not mention antisemitism as a motive.

and prevented the perpetrators from leaving that location and harming any further civilians. At this time we have no credible further threats from this incident but out of an abundance of caution we will be increasing our police presence in the community.
— Steven Fulop (@StevenFulop) December 11, 2019

Still unclear was the connection between the supermarket incident and an earlier shooting at a cemetery in another part of Jersey City.

Police said on Tuesday night that the suspected assailants killed Officer Joseph Seals in the cemetery in the city of 270,000 people, which is located across the Hudson River from Manhattan, before driving a U-Haul truck to the kosher market, where three Jews — two of whom have been identified as Leah Mindel Ferencz, 33, and Moshe Deutsch, 24 — were shot dead.

Anderson and Graham died at the kosher market in an exchange of fire with police.

Suspected Jersey City gunman said to have railed against Jews online

One of the suspected attackers in the deadly Jersey City shooting at a kosher supermarket on Tuesday railed against Jews and police officers on social media, according to a report Wednesday, as authorities indicated that the store had been targeted in the deadly incident.

A law enforcement official said police believe the shooter was motivated by the anti-Semitic and anti-police beliefs, The New York Times reported on Wednesday.

Details of the online posts were not provided in the article.

The two suspects, who were both killed in a shootout with police, were identified as David Anderson and Francine Graham, NBC New York quoted law enforcement sources saying.

According to the network, Anderson was once a follower of the Black Hebrew Israelites, who believe they are descendants of the ancient Israelites and may practice elements of both Judaism and Christianity.

Some Black Hebrew Israelite groups have been accused of racism and anti-Semitism.

Officials said a religious note was found in the vehicle allegedly used by Anderson and Graham but that they were still investigating a motive.

A neighbor of Graham’s in Jersey City told NBC she was formerly a home health aide in Manhattan who met Anderson after getting hurt and quitting her job. The neighbor said Graham became a “dark” person after meeting Anderson.

A YouTube channel reportedly belonging to Anderson had several playlists made up of videos with various conspiracy theories, some of which included anti-Semitic Black Hebrew Israelite theology.

Deadly attack on New Jersey Jews draws condolences, police protection

The deadly shooting at a New Jersey kosher supermarket on Tuesday drew condemnations from leaders in Israel, the US and the American Jewish community, while local officials announced heightened protection for Jewish institutions.

“On behalf of the people of Israel, I extend my condolences of the families of Leah Mindel Ferencz, Moshe Hirsch Deutsch, police officer Joe Seals and the other victims of the murderous attack in Jersey City,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu tweeted after the attack.

Though they initially ruled out a terror attack, investigators later said they believed the two gunmen who shot and killed a cop in a Jersey City cemetery, then drove to a kosher supermarket and began an hour-long gunbattle that left three Jewish bystanders and themselves dead, had deliberately targeted the Jewish shop.

“Based on our initial investigation (which is ongoing) we now believe the active shooters targeted the location they attacked,” Jersey City Mayor Steven Fulop said late Tuesday, without elaborating.

Next to the store, the only kosher supermarket in the area and a central fixture for the growing community, are a yeshiva and a synagogue. Around 100 Jewish families live in the area in the city’s Greenville neighborhood, with most of the families having moved there from Brooklyn in the last few years.

Authorities have not released information on the victims, but Chabad identified two of the dead as store owner Leah Minda Ferencz, 33, and Moshe Deutsch, 24, both members of the local Hasidic community.

The third victim was also believed to be a member of the local Jewish community.

New Jersey kosher supermarket shooting rattles tight-knit Jewish community

Hours after a furious gun battle erupted at a kosher supermarket on Tuesday in Jersey City, New Jersey, distraught residents had more questions than answers.

As of Tuesday night, the crime scene was cordoned off, keeping onlookers far from the scene. Some two dozen area residents, several reporters and many more police vehicles lingered outside the JC Kosher Supermarket on Martin Luther King Drive, on the western side of Jersey City. Some of the residents took video or live-streamed the scene on Facebook.

Investigators believe the shooting involved at least two young gunmen, and a possible third accomplice who escaped the violence. They shot and killed a police officer in a nearby cemetery before holing up in the market in the Greenville neighborhood and exchanging fire with dozens more officers. The gunmen were killed in the lengthy shootout.

It was an ordeal that violently and abruptly disturbed the heart of a small Orthodox Jewish community of nearly 100 families, most of whom moved from the Williamsburg section of Brooklyn to Jersey City over the past few years.

According to locals, the supermarket is the only kosher one of its kind in the area. It serves basic groceries, sandwiches and salads. Next door is Khal Adas Greenville, a building with a synagogue on a lower level and a yeshiva for children on the upper level.

“It’s a beautiful tight-knit community, very kind people, and it’s devastating that something like this happened,” said Rabbi Shmully Levitin, a Chabad rabbi who lives in the city, which is across the Hudson River from New York City.

Text of executive order to combat antisemitism

Jewish Insider found the text of the actual executive order being signed this afternoon.

I see nothing about treating Jews as a nationality. It simply says that antisemitism will be treated under Title VI the same as other types of discrimination.

I have no idea about the legalities involved.

Here is the text:
_______________________

EXECUTIVE ORDER- - - - - - -COMBATING ANTI-SEMITISM

By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America,it is hereby ordered as follows:

Section 1. Policy.

My Administration is committed to combating the rise of anti-Semitism and anti-Semitic incidents in the United States and around the world. Anti-Semitic incidents have increased since 2013, and students, in particular, continue to face anti-Semitic harassment in schools and on university and college campuses.

Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VI),42 U.S.C. 2000d et seq ., prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, and national origin in programs and activities receiving Federal financial assistance. While Title VI does not cover discrimination based on religion, individuals who face discrimination on the basis of race, color, or national origin do not lose protection under Title VI for also being a member of a group that shares common religious practices. Discrimination against Jews may give rise to a Title VI violation when the discrimination is based on an individual's race, color, or national origin.

It shall be the policy of the executive branch to enforce Title VI against prohibited forms of discrimination rooted in anti-Semitism as vigorously as against all other forms of discrimination prohibited by Title VI.

Sec. 2. Ensuring Robust Enforcement of Title VI. (a)

In enforcing Title VI, and identifying evidence of discrimination based on race, color, or national origin, all executive departments and agencies (agencies) charged with enforcing Title VI shall consider the following:

(i) the non-legally binding working definition of anti-Semitism adopted on May 26, 2016, by the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA),which states, "Antisemitism is a certain perception of Jews, which may be expressed as hatred toward Jews. Rhetorical and physical manifestations of antisemitism are directed toward Jewish or non-Jewish individuals and/or their property, toward Jewish community institutions and religious facilities"; and

(ii) the "Contemporary Examples of Anti-Semitism"identified by the IHRA, to the extent that any examples might be useful as evidence of discriminatory intent.

(b) In considering the materials described in subsections(a)(i) and (a)(ii) of this section, agencies shall not diminish or infringe upon any right protected under Federal law or under the First Amendment. As with all other Title VI complaints, the inquiry into whether a particular act constitutes discrimination prohibited by Title VI will require a detailed analysis of the allegations.

Sec. 3. Additional Authorities Prohibiting Anti-Semitic Discrimination.

Within 120 days of the date of this order, thehead of each agency charged with enforcing Title VI shall submit a report to the President, through the Assistant to the President for Domestic Policy, identifying additional non discrimination authorities within its enforcement authority with respect to which the IHRA definition of anti-Semitism could be considered.

Sec. 4. Rule of Construction.

Nothing in this order shall be construed to alter the evidentiary requirements pursuant to which an agency makes a determination that conduct, including harassment, amounts to actionable discrimination, or to diminish or infringe upon the rights protected under any other provision of law.

Sec. 5. General Provisions.

(a) Nothing in this order shall be construed to impair or otherwise affect:(i) the authority granted by law to an executive department or agency, or the head thereof; or

(ii) the functions of the Director of the Office of Management and Budget relating to budgetary, administrative, or legislative proposals.

(b) This order shall be implemented consistent with applicable law and subject to the availability of appropriations.

(c) This order is not intended to, and does not, create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law or in equity by any party against the United States,its departments, agencies, or entities, its officers, employees,or agents, or any other person.

THE WHITE HOUSE

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Study: Palestinian government corruption second only to Lebanon in MENA; 21% aware of "sextortion" to receive services

Transparency International has released a report on corruption in Middle East and North Africa countries, and the Palestinian Authority is regarded as one of the most corrupt in the region.

The most shocking result is in the area of government institutions demanding sexual favors from women in exchange for services.

When it comes to measuring the impact of corruption on women in Palestine, gathering concrete evidence can sometimes prove difficult.

Although GCB results show that 21 per cent of people in Palestine experience sextortion or know someone who has, these incidents often go unreported.

This may be due to a tendency of victim blaming within Palestinian communities, where sexuality is still taboo.

As a result, many women often think twice before reporting sextortion.

According to the Coalition for Accountability and Integrity (AMAN), Transparency International’s chapter in Palestine, every year a number of women contact the organisation’s Advocacy and Legal Advice Centre with complaints of sextortion in public workplaces. In such cases, public officials abuse their authority to gain sexual favours from their employees. However, when asked to file a formal complaint outlining these incidents, most women refuse.

Civil society organisations in Palestine have advocated for the inclusion of sextortion as an illegal form of corruption. However, there is still no cohesive, consistent legal framework to criminalise sextortion as well as sexual harassment within the public sector. Similarly, the legal framework does not recognise and address specific forms of corruption experienced by women.

There's more.

In Palestine, nearly one in two citizens thinks that most or all members of parliament
are involved in corruption. 51 per cent of citizens have little or no trust in the government.

17% of Palestinians paid a bribe to receive a service in the past year.

Here is a summary of the results:

The difference between the Palestinian Authority and the other governments in the study is that such a high percentage of the PA budget is paid by European governments and agencies - money that is supposedly to promote good governance.

Perhaps that is part of the problem.

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From an EU press release:

Each year, 10th of December marks the day, when the Universal Declaration of Human Rights was adopted with a view to express a universal commitment towards the respect and protection of human rights for all individuals without discrimination. This year, UDHR turns 71 and we also celebrate the 30th anniversary of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.

Yet fundamental human rights continue to be challenged around the world, including in the occupied Palestinian territory. Palestinian children in particular face significant obstacles in accessing basic services and enjoying their fundamental human rights. Some of the obstacles are developmental in nature and at times linked to cultural and religious issues as, for example, the case with child marriage or gender based violence. However, the major factor that impedes the full realisation of children’s rights in the oPt is the decades-long Israeli occupation, including the Gaza blockade. It is clear that children are disproportionately affected by the conflict and occupation. An unacceptable number of Palestinian child casualties have been attributed to Israeli forces and many Palestinian children are held in detention by Israeli forces over security offences. Moreover, restrictions on the freedom of movement severely impact on Palestinian children’s enjoyment of their fundamental human rights, including the right to education and the right to health.

According to the EU, Palestinian youth face some relatively minor human rights challenges from cultural or religious factors, but the real problem is Israel.

Not a single word about how the Palestinian political leadership abuses children as policy.

The official Fatah Facebook page published this video only last month of a girl reciting a poem glorifying children killing themselves for "martyrdom."

"His mother promised him a gift if he finished his food. The boy wondered in excitement: 'Is it a toy?' His mother approached him with a glowing look while carrying the gift. He looked, and it was a rifle! He shouted loudly: 'O Mommy! Mommy! What is this? Is this the gift?' She picked him up, hugged him, and said: 'My son, we were not created for happiness. In my eyes, you are meant for Martyrdom!' … Jerusalem is ours, our weapon is our Islam, and our ammunition is our children. And you, O my son, are meant for Martyrdom. [The boy] returned to his bed and complained to his pillow, for he is too young for these things… He gave in to his dreams. He sees his bride (i.e., Jerusalem), but she is handcuffed, and the Jews surround her, and she says to him: 'O my knight, release me from the handcuffs… I, Jerusalem, say this to you: What was taken by force will only be returned by force.'

A Bethlehem high school now has a plaque honoring a 17 year old suicide bomber at its entrance. It has an exhibition honoring other Palestinian terrorists.

These aren't anomalies. The entire Palestinian culture promotes dying for the honor of killing Jews directly to children.

And it is not only Fatah. UNRWA schools, funded largely by Europe, teach the exact same message to their students.

The same EU-funded PA just last month closed schools in order to increase the number of students participating in a "day of rage." Not a day of tolerance and human right - just rage against Jews and Israel.

Beyond that we have para-military summer camps by Hamas and Islamic Jihad that teach children how to use weapons. There is literally a formal program to recruit children to jihad.

It is astounding that the EU cannot say a word about this, and instead uses Human Rights Day as an excuse not to help Palestinian youth but to bash Israel - the target of the directed hate - in the name of human rights.

By not only ignoring this indoctrination of Palestinian children into a culture of martyrdom and jihad - and by funding that same message through Palestinian schools - the EU is enabling and promoting Palestinian child abuse.

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From Zvi:
_____________

Almost everyone who is commenting on whether Jeremy Corbyn is an antisemite is missing the obvious point. Forget about whether the man apologized. When confronted with the most vile and violent forms of antisemitism, what has the man ever done?

Corbyn refuses to tell his partisans to cease and desist in their attacks upon British Jewish community.

Now, the man is not stupid. He hears what his backers are saying. For years, he has heard the constant attacks on Jews in social media and the insane antisemitic conspiracy theories that inhabit the leftist fringe. For years, he has read rabid rants against Jews in "pro-Palestine" forums in which he has participated. For years, he has listened to speeches by his "fri ends" – themselves actual terrorist leaders – at funerals and in meetings. For years, he has witnessed antisemitic propaganda in demonstrations and in the media. He cannot possibly claim ignorance of all of this. And yet, Corbyn has not once, not ever made a public request that his partisans or fellow leftists treat Jews with decency or respect. Not once, not ever has he corrected or objected to the most extreme conspiracy theory about Jews, or even against Holocaust denial. Not once, not ever has Corbyn expressed any honest empathy for an abused and embattled Jewish community.

Not once. Not ever.

Now Corbyn is in an election campaign in which antisemitism actually matters to some swing voters, to members of his own party, and to a visible Jewish minority in his country. Now he is faced with a rising tide of increasingly open antisemitic sleaze by his own people, and with a situation in which female Jewish MPs of his own party feel afraid enough to require security at his own party conference. Now he sees his own partisans slandering a rather mild-mannered Chief Rabbi and heaping abuse on the Jewish Labour Movement, one of the party's oldest backers. Corbyn's close allies, confidantes and subordinates constantly spin absurd and vicious lies about Jews that regularly appall people on the left as well as people on the right. He wrote a forward for an openly antisemitic book, worked for a disgustingly antisemitic TV network run by a foreign dictatorship and invited the most violently antisemitic terrorist groups in the world to the British parliament. He watched as the Jewish community, increasingly infuriated by all of this, progressively deserted the Labour Party and as almost the entire community became convinced that he, personally, is an antisemite. He cannot possibly claim ignorance of all of this.

Corbyn also watched impassively as – right before his eyes, at the very news conference announcing the Chakrabarti whitewash – a Momentum activist slandered MP Ruth Smeeth to the extent that she fled in tears.

Faced with this antisemitic torrent, Corbyn has said absolutely nothing and done absolutely nothing.

Not once. Not ever.

No, I'm sorry, can I take that back? Faced with this antisemitic torrent, Jeremy has done one thing. He has aggressively protected the most vicious of the antisemites. He has used lawyers to attack whistleblowers; he has used his close allies to defame Jewish leaders; his office has repeatedly interfered in internal investigations; he has bribed an official with a peerage to create a whitewashed report; he has repeatedly appointed antisemites to important positions. At the same time, he has disdain fully avoided talking with the mainstream Jewish community.

In short, Corbyn has gone to an enormous amount of trouble to avoid resolving the antisemitism problem in Labour. He has gone to an absurd amount of trouble to avoid making any kind of peace at all with Jews who have spent decades working for Labour and who wanted very much for Labour to succeed. He has gone to an incredible amount of trouble to avoid being the man his supporters claim him to be ("opponent of all antisemitism and racism," etc.)

Any sane UK leader who was not deeply antisemitic would have been appalled by the flood of antisemitic abuse that he personally witnessed. Any sane UK leader who was not deeply antisemitic would have asked that his own people treat Jews with decency and stop savaging Jewish people. By sincerely requesting that his own backers to treat UK Jews with decency , he would have inoculated himself against charges of antisemitism and would have changed both the conversation and the actual situation.

But Corbyn has no objection when Jews are ridiculed by the left. He has no objection when Jews are demonized. He has no objection when Jews are physically attacked. He has no objection when his "friends" murder Jews in cold blood.

It doesn't matter whether Jeremy Corbyn claims to be sorry or not, because he doesn't act as though he considers Jews worthy of compassion or human rights. He acts as though he hates Jews. And he has created a party that is institutionally soaked in antisemitism, and which is the most powerful locus for antisemitism in the UK.

Jeremy Corbyn is an antisemite. If the shoe fits, wear it.

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From the NYT (I am not going to fisk the article itself, which is biased towards BDS in unreal ways:)

President Trump plans to sign an executive order on Wednesday targeting what he sees as anti-Semitism on college campuses by threatening to withhold federal money from educational institutions that fail to combat discrimination, three administration officials said on Tuesday.

The order will effectively interpret Judaism as a nationality, not just a religion, to trigger a federal law penalizing colleges and universities deemed to be shirking their responsibility to foster an open climate for minority students, according to the officials, who insisted on anonymity to discuss the matter before the announcement.

...The order to be signed by Mr. Trump would empower the Education Department to go further. Under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the department can withhold funding from any college or educational program that discriminates “on the ground of race, color, or national origin.” Religion was not included among the protected categories, so Mr. Trump’s order will have the effect of embracing an argument that Jews are a people or a race with a collective national origin in the Middle East, like Italian Americans or Polish Americans.

The criticisms of this are truly insane. People are saying that defining Jews as a nation is antisemitic, that it means that Jews aren't fully American, that it can result in eventual expulsion of Jews from the US. Each hot take is more insane than the previous one.

First of all - Jews have always defined ourselves as a nation. I tweeted a few examples:

Saying that Jews are a nation or a people is not controversial. It is a fact that everyone has recognized for millennia. (The picture on top was from a 1658 book.)

Is calling the Jewish people a "nation" the first step towards saying they are not Americans? The idea is utter nonsense. Title VI literature shows that it protects students of Indian, Korean, Chinese or Mexican origin - does that mean that Korean Americans are in danger of being considered less than American? Have you seen any protests by Indian Americans demanding that they should not be considered having a shared "national origin" under Title VI?

The entire purpose and intent of Title VI is to protect vulnerable groups. It doesn't mention religion, which meant that - at least officially - discrimination against Jews was considered a different category than discrimination against people of color or Chinese.

It doesn't take too much thought to realize that this is unfair, arbitrary and discriminatory against Jews (and Muslims.)

Everyone knows this. This is why the Department of Education has been increasingly liberally interpreting the regulations to include virtually all examples of discrimination against Jews, Muslims and Sikhs, based on their being perceived as being part of a national group.

A Department of Education letter from 2010, under the Obama administration, explains:

[A]nti‐Semitic harassment can trigger responsibilities under Title VI. While Title VI does not cover discrimination based solely on religion, groups that face discrimination on the basis of actual or perceived shared ancestry or ethnic characteristics may not be denied protection under Title VI on the ground that they also share a common faith. These principles apply not just to Jewish students, but also to students from any discrete religious group that shares, or is perceived to share, ancestry or ethnic characteristics (e.g., Muslims or Sikhs). Thus, harassment against students who are members of any religious group triggers a school’s Title VI responsibilities when the harassment is based on the group’s actual or perceived shared ancestry or ethnic characteristics, rather than solely on its members’ religious practices. A school also has responsibilities under Title VI when its students are harassed based on their actual or perceived citizenship or residency in a country whose residents share a dominant religion or a distinct religious identity.

This is a partial solution, but it doesn't protect Jews from being discriminated against for Jewish practices that can be considered purely religious and not national or ethnic in nature. If I'm understanding it correctly, a Jew who needs to take time off for Jewish holidays, or who refuses to participate in a food-based activity because of kosher rules, is not protected under Title VI. (Title VII protects employees from religious discrimination, but not students. And in reality, most schools are sensitive to antisemitism. But they are going above and beyond Title VI.)

Recognizing that Jews are part of a nation fixes this issue, and it allows Title VI to apply to all kinds of antisemitism without having to resort to the strained interpretations of the 2010 letter.

And indeed, denying that Jews are a people is antisemitic itself. While Arabs all understood Jews were a people before 1947, since then they have argued that Jews are only members of a religion - because if they admit we are a people, then they have to admit that we have a stake in the Land of Israel - one that predates Islam or any Arab claim.

The critics are literally arguing to protect antisemitism in colleges and schools - all because they hate Donald Trump and wan to call him an antisemite.

Now, that's messed up.

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Jersey City mayor now says that it appears Jews were targeted

A tweet from Jersey City mayor Steven Fulop about today's shootings that resulted in the deaths of a police officer and (apparently) three Jews in a kosher grocery store.

Based on our initial investigation (which is ongoing) we now believe the active shooters targeted the location they attacked. Due to an excess of caution the community may see additional police resources in the days/weeks ahead. We have no indication there are any further threats
— Steven Fulop (@StevenFulop) December 11, 2019

Initially, reports indicated that the shooters were escaping from a clash with police at a cemetery and it seemed the kosher grocery was just where they somehow ended up; this seems to indicate that the grocery store was targeted because Jews would be there.

As the Left keeps talking about the (very real) threat of white nationalist antisemitism, someone tell me: who is dealing with the antisemitism in inner cities, from people who are supposedly being protected by the same Left? Someone please explain what outreach programs they are working on to defeat antisemitism that other minority groups exhibit? Or does their imagination not extend to the idea that anyone besides neo-Nazis might irrationally hate Jews? (Or, worse, do they tacitly agree that Jews are the victimizers and people of color are the victims, and the Jews get what they deserve?)

I fear that in today's world of victimhood being the coin of the realm, no one wants to think that Jews can be victims of antisemitic violence by people who must be protected themselves from racism.

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From Algemeiner:

The White House said on Tuesday that the white supremacist website TruNews was not credentialed to cover press events at the Executive Mansion — hours after two members of Congress sent a letter to President Donald Trump’s acting chief of staff urging him “to condemn the antisemitic comments by TruNews founder and host Rick Wiles and deny TruNews any future access to the White House.”

In their letter on Tuesday to Mick Mulvaney, Reps. Ted Deutch (D-FL) and Elaine Luria (D-VA) asserted that, “Shockingly, published reports suggest that TruNews has participated at press events at the White House, including on Sept. 26, 2018, when President Trump took a question from TruNews during a press conference.”

While I was not the one who discovered the "Jew Coup" episode of TruNews, it had been on the Right Wing Watch website for a couple of days before I started my campaign to make sure TruNews does not cover any White House events going forward.

My tweets about the offensive site received thousands of retweets and "likes." Soon the Israeli and Jewish media picked up on it, and from there it slowly made it to The Independent (UK) and a Bari Weiss op-ed in the New York Times.

It seems highly unlikely that the White House will invite these Jew-hating pigs to events any more.

_______________________

Right Wing Watch continues to follow and report on the reprehensible organization. Last week it reported that TruNews is considered a church by the IRS and therefore does not have to report on its sources of funding. This is a giant loophole that needs to be closed. The "Flowing Streams" church it claims to be part of doesn't even have a website or a Facebook page, and TruNews describes the church as "a media-centric religious organization that is a pioneer in Christian digital media content production and distribution. TRUNEWS is the church’s flagship program."

Meaning, it is a media organization masquerading as a church.

It is hard to believe that there are any congregants, since the church's address is difficult to find. I found an old address but TruNews claims they bought a building on a ten acre lot, again without revealing its address. There are no social media photos of any sermons or events. The entire idea that this is a church is a scam.

The IRS shouldn't find it too difficult to discover this for itself.

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12/10 Links Pt2: UK Jewish Students Protesting Corbyn Targeted With Antisemitic Vitriol by Labour Backers; Natan Sharansky to be awarded prestigious Genesis Prize for 2020

From Ian:

The Labour Party’s problem with Jews

One key point that tends to be overlooked in discussions of anti-Semitism is the role of the politics of identity. In an era when identitarian entrepreneurs enjoy great influence over Western culture, anti-Semitism is frequently written off on the basis that other minority groups suffer worse hatred than Jews do. A few days ago, Gus John, a leading anti-racist campaigner, resigned from a Church of England advisory body in protest against Archbishop Justin’s Welby’s endorsement of the chief rabbi’s criticism of the Labour Party’s anti-Semitism. John wasn’t merely protesting against what he called Welby’s ‘disgraceful endorsement of the chief rabbi’s unjust condemnation of Jeremy Corbyn and the entire Labour Party’ – more broadly he condemned Welby for choosing to speak out on this issue rather than on other manifestations of racism. He said, ‘No one section of the population of this nation has a monopoly on oppression, pain and hurt’, before noting that black and Asian people faced discrimination within the church.

That John’s defence of the Labour Party against what he called the chief rabbi’s ‘scaremongering’ was coupled with a denunciation of the church’s reluctance to make one of its black members Archbishop of Canterbury sums up the spirit of competitive victimhood that drives the politicisation of identity. John’s irritation with Welby expresses a widely held frustration on the left – that the focus on Labour’s anti-Semitism distracts attention from more important cases of racism.

Jews have clearly lost out in the identity stakes. According to the worldview of Anglo-American identity politics, Jews are the personification of white privilege. In an age in which white privilege is treated as a cultural crime, Jews are often portrayed as a unique, hyper-white community who have far more privileges to check than others do. Often, this reaction against ‘Jewish privilege’ meshes with hostility towards Israel, producing a very distinctive 21st-century narrative of anti-Jewish hatred.

Identity politics did not set out to promote anti-Semitism. However, it has helped to create a cultural and political climate in which Jewishness is increasingly perceived as a marker of privilege. And in a world in which hostility to privilege is now culturally endorsed, it seems that hostility towards Jews can be judged by a different standard to animosity towards other groups. What has happened is that anti-Semitism hasn’t so much been normalised as rendered banal.

Yes, we are still confronted with vicious forms of anti-Semitism – but it is the banalisation of anti-Semitism that is the most insidious manifestation of anti-Jewish sentiment today. Anti-Zionism may have given permission to anti-Semites to crawl out of the woodwork, but it is the politicisation of identity that discourages society from taking this racism seriously.

Col. Kemp: Friend of Hate

Never in history has a more dangerous man been a contender for leadership of any Western democracy.

Corbyn has consistently sided with those that wish us harm. When IRA terrorists bombed the Cabinet at Brighton, his response was to invite two convicted volunteers of the murderous organisation to the House of Commons.

And when Russian assassins were sent on a murder mission to Salisbury, Corbyn failed to condemn the Kremlin and called for further proof of state-sponsored involvement.

He calls Hamas and Hezbollah his ‘friends’ and appeared to take part in a ceremony honouring a terrorist involved in the Munich Olympics massacre.

He said the death of Bin Laden was a tragedy and wanted the leader of IS arrested not killed. The same with British jihadists Mohammed Emwazi and Sally-Anne Jones.

His deputies John McDonnell and Diane Abbott demanded the closure of MI5, the security agency that protects us from terrorists.

With Corbyn as PM how could our allies trust us with their most sensitive secrets?

The US and Israel, vital sources of life-saving intelligence, have reluctantly drawn up plans to restrict co-operation in the event of a Corbyn premiership.

The Guardian: 'Anyone but Corbyn': Jewish voters turn away from Labour

In the Three Bakers kosher cafe in Bury South, lunchtime customers agreed they had one thing in common with regard to the election: ABC – Anyone But Corbyn.

“You’ll get the same answer from everyone in here,” said Sara, a customer in her early 30s who has decided to vote Conservative. Indeed, none of those who spoke to the Guardian were planning to back Labour – in a seat it has held for 22 years.

Jewish voters are turning away in droves from the party, once seen as their traditional political home, owing to a combination of “extreme” left policies and poor leadership on antisemitism, which led to the recent unprecedented intervention from the chief rabbi when he effectively urged the community not to vote Labour.

“Jews have deserted the Labour party for two main reasons,” said Jonathan Boyd, executive director of the Institute for Jewish Policy Research (JPR). “First, the party has lurched to the left; and second, the party has failed to understand or recognise how antisemitism manifests itself in leftist politics and as a result allowed it to fester and grow.

“To regain the support of Jewish voters, it would have to shift on both fronts: move back towards the political centre and root out the leftwing manifestations of antisemitism that exist – not only in the party itself, but in wider society.”

These factors play out in constituencies such as Bury South, with a Jewish population of 10%, as well as Finchley and Golders Green (21%), Hendon (17%), Hertsmere (14%), and Hackney North and Stoke Newington (11%).

New Statesman declines to endorse Jeremy Corbyn over antisemitism

The leading left-wing political journal, the New Statesman, has, unusually, declined to endorse the leader of the Labour Party, Jeremy Corbyn over antisemitism.

In an editorial the magazine read: “the essential judgement that must be made is on Mr Corbyn himself. His reluctance to apologise for the antisemitism in Labour and to take a stance on Brexit, the biggest issue facing the country, make him unfit to be prime minister.”

The editorial went on to note that Labour has become only the second party (after the BNP) to be probed by the Equality and Human Rights Commission. That full statutory investigation was launched on 28th May following a formal referral and detailed legal representations from Campaign Against Antisemitism, which is the complainant.

It also noted the Chief Rabbi’s unprecedented intervention calling out Labour antisemitism, warnings made by the Jewish Chronicle, the Jewish Labour Movement’s decision not to endorse its own Party, and other developments.

"Pro-Israel" J-Street, without evidence, demands the US investigate Israel misuse of aid

You know the expression "where there's smoke, there's fire"?

Not when someone has a gigantic smoke machine. And that is exactly what J-Street builds.

From a J-Street mailing:

Let’s make sure US aid is being used for Israel’s defense, and not the demolition of Palestinian homes
Join us in backing a new effort in Congress to ensure that US military assistance is being used in compliance with current US law, for Israel’s defense and not in connection with the displacement of Palestinians.

....[W]e’re strongly backing a new congressional letter, initiated by Reps. Ro Khanna, Anna Eshoo and Steve Cohen, pushing for greater accountability in ensuring that US aid to Israel is only being used for legitimate defense purposes -- and that equipment purchased with our tax-payer dollars is not being used to displace Palestinians.

Over a dozen members have already joined the Khanna-Eshoo-Cohen letter, expressing concern over the dramatic rise in demolitions this year.

The members ask -- pursuant to the Arms Export Control Act -- for the administration to report back to Congress on whether US-supplied equipment has been used for such demolitions and whether such use constitutes a breach of any existing restrictions.

As I have reported previously, there already is an audit process in place to see where every dollar of US aid is spent in Israel.

Does J-Street have any evidence that Israel is somehow bypassing the existing controls and spending US money on other things? If you read the many reports from the Congressional Research Service about aid to Israel, there doesn't seem to be any. US aid is earmarked for specific, targeted programs from the F-35 fighter to anti-rocket defense systems.

In other words, the US government is clearly not giving Israel bulldozers., nor is it handing Israel any checks it can spend on bulldozers.

If there is zero evidence of misuse of funds, and an existing audit mechanism to ensure that there is no misuse of funds, why ask for an investigation into misuse of funds?

There is no fire, and there is no smoke, except from J-Street's massive smoke machine meant to obscure rather than reveal the truth.

And speaking of transparency - this new congressional letter J-Street refers to is not public. They are asking us to tell out members of Congress to sign a letter we are not privy to see ourselves!

You know who did see the letter? Al Monitor! For some reason, Arab news outlets have more visibility into a Congressional letter than US citizens.

And J-Street - supposedly agitating for more transparency in aid to Israel - is cool with telling people to support a letter sight unseen, except for Arab media.

We have lots of ideas, but we need more resources to be even more effective. Please donate today to help get the message out and to help defend Israel.

Is the EU helping to fund "pay for slay"?

Wafa reports:

The European Union contributed €10 million to support the Palestinian Authority payment of social allowances to vulnerable families in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, said an EU press release issued on Tuesday.

The EU supports the Palestinian Authority Ministry of Social Development Cash Transfer Programme responsible for the provision of basic social protection to the most vulnerable families in the West Bank and Gaza. The social allowances are paid on a quarterly basis to around 105,000 vulnerable families.

For this third payment in 2019, the contribution of the EU (€10 million) will cover the social allowances of 68,743 families of which 78% live in the Gaza Strip.

Acting EU Representative Tomas Niklasson [said], “In Palestine, we are proud of our long partnership with the Ministry of Social Development. We have been working hand in hand for many years to combat poverty and support those in need. This is in line with our shared values putting human rights first and leaving no-one behind,” he added.

Miftah, when looking at the budget of the Ministry of Social Development, noted:

After analyzing the budget of the Ministry of Social Development and its related financial reports, it was seen that there is an initial defect which has been accumulating over the years; namely the mixing of the center of responsibility of the Ministry of Social Development with the center of responsibility of the institution supporting the families of martyrs, and the two centers of responsibility were both classified under “the Ministry of Social Development/Affairs”. This led to inflating the center of responsibility budget of the Ministry of Social Development in a misleading and untruthful manner because there was no separation between its actual expenditures and the expenditures of the institution supporting the families of martyrs.

When the EU gives money to the Ministry of Social Development they are directly increasing the budget of the organization that pays families of terrorists.

I do not have any evidence that the EU is directly paying any terrorist families, but their contribution to this ministry frees money up for the PA to pay them.

(h/t Irene)

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12/10 Links Pt1: David Singer: Trump, Netanyahu and Gantz Can End in 2020 What Began in 1920; EU think tank advocating for West Bank boycotts funded by occupied territories worldwide

From Ian:

David Singer: Trump, Netanyahu and Gantz Can End in 2020 What Began in 1920

Designating the territory for reconstitution of the Jewish National Home in Palestine – begun with the San Remo Convention and Treaty of Sevres in April and August 1920 respectively – could finally be completed 100 years later in 2020.

Achieving this long-overdue outcome will require Israel to forma Government of National Unity by 11 December 2019 – headed initially by Benjamin Netanyahu as Prime Minister for a minimum term of six months – enabling the new Parliament to ratify those areas of Judea and Samaria to which Israeli sovereignty will be extended as delineated by the Government.

This Unity Government should ideally hold at least 80 of the 120 seats in the Knesset so that there is an overwhelming majority of Israel’s elected politicians supporting any determinative decisions made by the Knesset in relation to Judea and Samaria.

Israel has been presented with this amazing opportunity following President Trump’s Secretary for State – Mike Pompeo – issuing this declaration on 19 November 2019:
“After carefully studying all sides of the legal debate, this administration agrees with President Reagan. The establishment of Israeli civilian settlements in the West Bank is not per se inconsistent with international law.”

Pompeo’s statement followed US Ambassador to Israel – David Friedman – stating on 8 June 2019:
“Under certain circumstances I think Israel has the right to retain some, but unlikely all, of the West Bank.”

Friedman had then cautioned:
“We really don’t have a view until we understand how much, on what terms, why does it make sense, why is it good for Israel, why is it good for the region, why does it not create more problems than it solves.These are all things that we’d want to understand, and I don’t want to prejudge.”

Sa'ar vows to ensure Jewish continuity from Jerusalem to Dead Sea

Likud leadership candidate Gideon Sa'ar symbolically began his campaign on Tuesday by touring sites in the Jordan Valley that are seen as a symbol of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's broken promises

Netanyahu promised ahead of the September election to annex the Jordan Valley. Ahead of past elections, he has visited the E-1 site between Jerusalem and Ma'ale Adumim and promised to build there. He vowed in an October 2018 cabinet building to remove the Bedouin outpost Khan al-Ahmar.

Sa'ar pointed out on the tour that Netanyahu has not kept any of those promises. He also reacted to hints from Netanyahu in a speech on Sunday that Sa'ar would not be as loyal to Judea and Samaria.

"I support the views that the prime minister expressed here during past election campaigns," Sa'ar said mockingly at E-1. "It is possible to carry out these views better."

Sa'ar said there was a window of opportunity to take action while Israel enjoys an administration in Washington that gives Israel a relatively free hand, because there is no guarantee that the next American administration will be better. He said the time had come to take steps to ensure contiguity from Jerusalem to the Dead Sea in the Jordan Valley.

"The struggle for E-1 is a struggle for the heart of Israel," Sa'ar said. "Netanyahu out of all people, who build the Har Homa neighborhood [in Jerusalem] despite international pressure, should be building here. The rule for Har Homa should be the rule for E-1 and the Givat Hamatos [hilltop in Jerusalem]."

Third Elections Appear Inevitable in Israel, as Coalition Efforts Remain Stuck in Logjam

Israeli politics remained stuck in a logjam on Monday, with Yisrael Beiteinu head Avigdor Lieberman appearing to rebuff a call to join a right-wing coalition headed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and Blue and White party number two Yair Lapid saying he would forgo a rotating arrangement with party chairman Benny Gantz.

Following a second round of elections in September after a vote in April failed to produce a clear winner, both Netanyahu and Gantz have failed to form a workable governing coalition. If one was not established by Wednesday, a third round of elections would be triggered automatically.

On Monday, a tentative date for those potential elections was announced — March 2.

Netanyahu called earlier Monday for Lieberman to renege on his pledge to only support a unity government and instead join a narrow right-wing coalition.

The Israeli news site Walla reported that Lieberman seemed to reject any such possibility, telling a group of officials from Netanyahu’s Likud party on Monday evening that “a narrow government will be sorrow for the State of Israel,” a play on the Hebrew word “tzara,” which means both “narrow” and “sorrow.”

“Israel faces a dual challenge — security and economic — and cannot function within the reduced framework of a narrow government, which would be a great sorrow for Israel,” Lieberman added.