Elder Of Ziyon - Israel News

Tuesday, February 02, 2021

Palestinians freak over "normalization" of Palestinian TV interview with Benny Gantz

On Sunday, the independent Palestinian Al Ghad al-Arabi channel interviewed Israel's Defense Minister Benny Gantz.

What he said wasn't as important as the fact that the interview happened at all.

Palestinian factions have denounced the interview, calling it "illegal" and "normalization."

Islamic Jihad said in a press statement, "Hosting the occupation ministers or any Zionist figures on the Arab media is unacceptable, condemned and unacceptable, whatever the justifications."

The Palestinian Journalist Bloc considered this "a dangerous moral slip, and a blatant encroachment on our Palestinian people, the peoples of our nation, and the world's free people." and called for all Arab media to abide by the decisions of the Arab Journalists Union "to fight media normalization with the occupation and its institutions, as it carries a danger to our people and their rights.." It called for an apology.

The Union of Arab Journalists called for rejecting this "unacceptable normalization act with no justification," stressing that it disregards the sacrifices of our Palestinian people and contributes to beautifying Israel's image before the world at the expense of the suffering of the Palestinian people and their just cause.

The Democratic Press Association expressed its rejection of this "blatant normalizing participation on the Al-Ghad TV screen."

The government media office in Gaza also condemned Al-Ghad TV, saying "Gantz had stained his hands with the blood of our Palestinian people" and said that "such hosting of figures from the occupation state goes beyond the professional and national Arab dimension, which affects the feelings of millions of supporters of the Palestinian cause."

The Palestinian Media Group emphasized its rejection and strong condemnation of the Al-Ghad Al-Arabi channel, "which indicates the submission to which some Arab media outlets have reached, which insist on walking in the orbit of treacherous normalization of the just Palestinian cause."

The condemnations were so widespread that Al Ghad al-Arabi issued a statement on Monday night during its broadcast, saying that it is an independent and neutral Arab channel that deals with Arab and Palestinian affairs and it intends to continue its professional mission and its commitment to the usual professional rules in media work.

The fact that it didn't apologize is almost as a big a deal as doing the interview to begin with. It shows that even Palestinian solidarity in matters like this is cracking.

02/01 Links Pt2: The Normalization of Antisemitism; UNRWA fundamentally and knowingly breaches agreement that allowed renewed Canadian Aid; Biden administration: Where do BDS and B'Tselem fit in?

From Ian:

Ha'aretz[$]: The Normalization of Antisemitism

The New Israel Fund, along with a series of other “progressive” organizations in the United States that make up the Progressive Israel Network – including J Street, Americans for Peace Now, Habonim Dror North America and Hashomer Hatzair World Movement – put together a petition ahead of Joe Biden’s entry to the White House. It calls on the U.S. government not to adopt the working definition of antisemitism formulated by the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance and already adopted by more than 10 countries (including Muslim-majority countries like Bahrain and Albania, with Morocco also on the way). The signatories say the definition is overly broad and so will allow the fight against antisemitism to be exploited to “suppress legitimate free speech, criticism of Israeli government actions, and advocacy for Palestinian rights.”

What specifically bothers the authors of the petition? They object to the section that cites as an example of antisemitism the assertion that “the existence of a State of Israel is a racist endeavour.” The “existence” of Israel, mind you, is not this or that government policy. In other words, the petition’s authors wish to legitimize the ideas that stood behind the UN Security Council’s despicable 1975 resolution that “Zionism is racism.” So despicable that even the UN, not exactly the most Israel-friendly forum, decided to rescind it in 1991.

Amos Oz used to say that whoever thinks that all peoples deserve the right to self-definition, except the Jews, is antisemitic. By this definition – from the most important intellectual the Israeli left has ever had, not the IHRA – the New Israel Fund and its partners are not seeking to distinguish legitimate criticism from anti-Jewish racism, but rather to advance the legitimation and normalization of antisemitism.

So as to remove any doubt, the petition they’ve signed clarifies not just what it aims to legitimize, but whom in particular: “Secretary of State Pompeo’s State Department’s unambiguous declarations that ‘anti-Zionism is anti-Semitism’ and that ‘the Global BDS Campaign [is] a manifestation of anti-Semitism’ represent a harmful overreach.” The radical left often tends to blur the line between those who oppose the occupation and support the two states for two peoples solution, and those who do not recognize the nation-state of the Jewish people’s right to exist and believe that Zionism is a regrettable historic aberration, an illegitimate colonialist enterprise that must be rolled back.

But of course J Street is so committed to combating Antisemitism, that it is refusing to support the most widely accepted international definition of Antisemitism. Make sense? https://t.co/qvx0sMeqmh
— Arsen Ostrovsky (@Ostrov_A) February 1, 2021

The Fights Against BDS and for IHRA Converge

January was marked by unprecedented political unrest in the US, following the presidential election and rioting in Washington. The incoming Biden administration has not yet articulated its policy regarding antisemitism or BDS, but certain aspects are becoming clearer. Incoming Secretary of State Antony Blinken stated during his confirmation hearing that he and the Biden administration are “resolutely opposed to BDS.” Nominee for US Ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield stated in her confirmation hearing that BDS is “unacceptable,” “verges on antisemitic,” and “it’s important that they not be allowed to have a voice at the UN, and I intend to work against that.”

According to one report, a Trump-era initiative to list BDS groups has been sidelined because of the transition, and internal State Department opposition. The stance of new Education Department appointees on BDS remains unclear.

Concern is rising with regard to lower-level nominees. The nomination of a former member of Students for Justice in Palestine, Maher Bitar, to head intelligence activities at the National Security Council is especially alarming. Bitar had served in the Obama administration as Director for Israeli and Palestinian Affairs, as well as a lawyer for UNRWA, before becoming General Counsel for the House Intelligence Committee. A nominee for Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights who espoused troubling beliefs in college, including the idea that Jews were responsible for the slave trade, unconvincingly characterized her previous stance as satire but also denounced antisemitism.

The new administration has revoked the Trump administration’s Executive Order banning “Critical Race Theory” training in Federal agencies and for Federal contractors (a move that had already been blocked by a Federal court).

The use of ethnic studies and “racial equity” by the BDS movement to generate antisemitism was demonstrated by the California “ethnic studies” curriculum — and also by comments from a University of California Riverside professor that “Most California public education administrators don’t understand how Zionism politically toxified our schools and curricula. It prevents us from teaching historical material about entire populations. This must not continue.”

Cartoon of the Day: It's a niche but a lucrative one

Continuing my series of recaptioning old cartoons...

If Israel opened up clinics to vaccinate Palestinians, we KNOW what would happen. Because it happened in 2014.

In The Guardian, Maya Abu Al-Hayat argues that Israel should vaccinate all Palestinians.

I tweeted a response:

If Israel would set up a free vaccination clinic for Palestinians outside Ramallah as @guardian
insists:

1) The Palestinian Authority would threaten anyone who goes there
2) The clinic would be barraged with rocks
3) The PA would go to the UN to condemn the "illegal settlement" pic.twitter.com/euaSLtHNHI
— Elder of Ziyon 🇮🇱 (@elderofziyon) February 1, 2021

I am not joking.

Here is the Wikipedia entry about the IDF field hospital opened for Gazans during the 2014 Gaza war:

The Israel Defense Forces opened a field hospital at Erez Crossing on July 20, 2014, intending it to be for sick and injured Palestinians from Gaza.

The hospital was opened in response to reports by Gazans and news media that the 2014 Israel–Gaza conflict had caused a dire shortage of medical facilities in Gaza. The decision to set up the hospital was made by the Israeli government following the recommendation of the coordinator of government activities in the Palestinian territories General Yoav Mordechai, and approved by the IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Benny Gantz.

According to Al Jazeera, Israeli soldiers at Erez Crossing attempted to persuade families to take relatives to the field hospital for treatment, rather than making the journey to a Palestinian-run hospital in East Jerusalem. IDF Lt.-Col.Sharon Biton from the office of the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories stated that "some" of the refugees passing through the Erez Crossing "refused to get medical treatments" in the Israeli field hospital. The IDF Spokesman's office asserted that Hamas “prevented Palestinians from entering Israel in order to reach the hospital.” A Gazan who asked that his name not be reported told the Jerusalem Post people are reluctant to use the field hospital out of fear Gazans treated in the IDF hospital will come under suspicion by Hamas, which controlled Gaza at the time.

The hospital had 20 doctors, nurses and technicians, a lab, an X-ray device and a pharmacy. Among the doctors were a pediatrician, an ophthalmologist and a gynecologist.

There was opposition on the Palestinian side to injured civilians receiving treatment in Israel thus the hospital stayed almost empty. Hamas fired ten mortar shells at the hospital.

It would be slightly different in the West Bank, but not much. The clinics would have to be erected in Areas A and B, so the Palestinians would call them illegal settlements. The PA has already forbidden Palestinians from getting medical treatment in Israel. Palestinians would think that Israel is injecting poison or drugs that cause impotence, and the rumors to that effect would run rampant.

This is all obvious because we've seen it happen before. The Guardian is engaging in slander, not reporting.

02/01 Links Pt1: Kushner, Berkowitz, Friedman nominated for Nobel Peace Prize for Israel deals; Muslim-majority Kosovo forges ties with Israel - will open embassy in Jerusalem; The Apartheid state of Lebanon.

From Ian:

Kushner, Berkowitz, Friedman nominated for Nobel Peace Prize for Israel deals

Former White House senior adviser Jared Kushner and his deputy, Avi Berkowitz, as well as former US Ambassador to Israel David Friedman and former Israeli Ambassador to the US Ron Dermer were nominated on Sunday for the Nobel Peace Prize for their role in negotiating four normalization deals between Israel and Arab nations known as the "Abraham Accords."

Nominating the pair of former deputies to then-President Donald Trump was American attorney Alan Dershowitz, who was eligible to do so in his capacity as a professor emeritus of Harvard Law School.

In his nomination letter, Dershowitz wrote that he strongly believes that the singular event that warrants the Nobel Peace Prize for this past year is the Abraham Accords.

"These Accords, which have brought about normalization between Israel and several Sunni Arab nations, fulfill all the criteria for the prize. They hold the promise of an even broader peace in the Middle East between Israel, the Palestinians and other Arab nations. They are a giant step forward in bringing peace and stability to the region, and even to the world," he continued.

Dershowitz added that he wanted to "emphasize the enormous contributions to peace made by Jared Kushner, Avrahm Berkowitz, David Friedman and Ron Dermer," insisting that "these men played especially important roles."

"Kushner and Berkowitz traveled all over the region, meeting with leaders and their associates, advocating for peace and nailing down all the details."

WATCH: Fascinating conversation on the #AbrahamAccords and peace in the Middle East with @omaralbusaidy from the UAE and @FleurHassanN from Israel: https://t.co/4Qkdc4DuhK #PeoplesAbrahamAccords @StandWithUs
— Michael Dickson (@michaeldickson) February 1, 2021

Muslim-majority Kosovo forges ties with Israel; will open embassy in Jerusalem

Israel and Kosovo formally established diplomatic ties on Monday, with the Muslim-majority territory also recognizing Jerusalem as the Jewish state’s capital — putting it at odds with the rest of the Islamic world.

In a ceremony held over Zoom in Jerusalem and Pristina, Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi and his counterpart from Kosovo, Meliza Haradinaj Stublla, signed a joint declaration establishing ties.

Travel restrictions to curb the spread of COVID-19, including the closure of Ben Gurion Airport, made an in-person ceremony impossible. It was the first time Israel established relations with a country virtually.

Ashkenazi said he had approved Kosovo’s “formal request to open an embassy in Jerusalem.”

“The establishment of relations between Israel and Kosovo is an important and moving historical step that reflects the many changes the region has experienced in recent months,” Ashkenazi said.

“Today, Kosovo officially joins the circle of countries that aspire to peace and stability and recognize Israel, and Jerusalem as its capital.”

The foreign ministers signed two cooperation agreements — one to establish their diplomatic relations and the other relating to the activities of Israel’s international development agency Mashav. They will send each other copies via email, each to be signed by their counterpart, according to the Foreign Ministry.

The ceremony was broadcast live on the Foreign Ministry’s Facebook page.

US State Department spokesman Ned Price praised the sides for the “historic day.”

“When our partners are united, the United States is stronger. Deeper international ties help further peace and stability in the Balkans and Middle East,” he said.

#HistoryInTheMaking yet again, as #Israel & #Kosovo formally sign agreement (via Zoom, what else) to establish diplomatic relations! Importantly, Kosovo is a majority Muslim country in Europe, that has also agreed to open its Embassy in Israel's capital, Jerusalem! 🇮🇱🤝🇽🇰 pic.twitter.com/27jcuiAm1h
— Arsen Ostrovsky (@Ostrov_A) February 1, 2021

120 years ago: A Jewish obituary for Queen Victoria

From The Jewish Voice (St. Louis), February 1, 1901:

A BEAUTIFUL TRIBUTE TO QUEEN VICTORIA, FROM A PURELY JEWISH STANDPOINT.

Dr:. SALE, basing his eloquent remarks on the life of QUEEN VICTORIA upon "Favor is deceitful, and beauty is vain ; but a woman that feareth the Lord, she shall be praised" spoke for and from the heart of the Jews, when be said :

"And we, too. as Jews, have cause to mourn this woman among-queens, and this queen among women. It was in the beginning of her reign that the civil disabilities were removed from the Jew, and be was enabled to take his place among the noblest in the land. When she entered London shortly after she became Queen;-she knighted Moses Montefiore, as if to proclaim to the world that all her subjects were alike in her eyes. Her predecessors had been busy extracting money or teeth from the poor Jews of their times. She was busy knighting them and giving them their position as men among men. In what other country but England, under other monarch but Victoria could a Lord Beaconsfield have been a Prime Minister? True, his father, driven from the Portuguese synagogue, had had his children baptized. But Benjamin Disraeli remained, as we know, as all England knew, a Jew even up to the moment of his death. Any one who bas read the testimony of friends' who knew him intimately, who has read his own productions, must know this. And yet this man, of Jewish parentage, of strong inclinations toward his father's race, of decidedly Semitic countenance and manners, rose not only to the position of Prime Minister, but is even acknowledged the favorite among the ministers that Victoria had.

"We may seem to some a little overzealous in ascribing all this to Queen Victoria. She had, it is true, the ability to surround herself with the best men and to obtain from them their best work. Melbourne, Brougham, Cobden, Bright, and a host of others must not be forgotten. But during nearly her whole reign the Queen herself was the guiding spirit of affairs. To see how much we owe to her we have only to imagine what serious obstacles she could have placed in the way of these reforms, had she been herself a little soul. And thus the Jew of England may thank her to-day that he is politically and socially the equal of his fellow-Englishmen. "

YNet reports (Hebrew), "The first shipment of 2,000 vaccines of Moderna's Coronavirus vaccine was transferred to the Palestinian Authority's medical teams through the Beitunia crossing. This is out of the 5,000 vaccines approved by the political echelon in accordance with the recommendations of the Minister of Defense and the Coordinator of Government Operations in the Occupied Territories."

This is not mentioned by the official Palestinian news agency.

Instead, there is a story from Sunday denying the news that Israel was planning to transfer 5000 vaccines to medical teams in the territories.

The Director General of Support Medical Services at the Ministry of Health, Osama al-Najjar, told Anadolu Agency that the ministry or any other Palestinian party “did not receive” any quantities of the Corona vaccine from Israel.
Al-Najjar added, “We have not been informed of the existence of vaccines, and we do not know anything,” indicating that Israel is under international pressure and wants to publish this news to alleviate it.
He said that “international institutions and human rights organizations are pressuring Israel to allow vaccinations to enter the occupied Palestinian territories. "

Someone is lying, and it isn't Israel. The YNet story clearly says that the vaccines were dropped off at the Beitunia crossing, and Israel wouldn't do this without coordination with the Palestinian health authorities.

It appears that the Palestinians, as always, are looking for ways to score public relations points that paint Israel as a heartless, evil entity. Plus their misplaced sense of pride doesn't allow them to admit that they are cooperating with Israel on anything, even though everyone knows they are.

Palestinian prime minister Mahmoud Shtayyeh confirmed that some 50,000 vaccines are due to arrive by the middle of this month, without mentioning that Israel of course approves the shipment.

Meanwhile, Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi and his Tunisian counterpart Othman Al-Jaradi affirmed their countries' support for the establishment of a Palestinian state on the "borders" of June 4, 1967, and they stressed that the Palestinian issue is the most important Arab issue.

Neither of them are offering vaccines to their Palestinian brethren, though.

From the Jerusalem Post:

On Sunday, Palestinian sources said that PA security forces arrested five men in the West Bank on suspicion of being affiliated with Hamas. One of the detainees, Ameed Shehadeh, is a journalist from Nablus. The sources said he was arrested for criticizing the PA in a Facebook post.
Also in Nablus, the PA security forces arrested Qassam Sabbah, who was recently released from Israeli prison and An-Najah University student Hussam Shtayyeh.
In Hebron, the PA’s Preventive Security Service arrested Muhab al-Juneidi one week after his wedding. In the town of Salfit, Abdullah Abdel Fattah was also arrested by the PA security forces.
Last week, the PA security forces arrested Nablus lawyer Awni al-Sharif on charges of “insulting” the Palestinian leadership on social media platforms.
According to the sources, the latest arrests are in the context of the PA’s ongoing crackdown on its political rivals in the West Bank, including those suspected of being affiliated with Hamas.

Democracy!

Meanwhile, on the Gaza side:

Last week, Palestinian officials in Ramallah ... said that three senior Fatah activists – Ahmad Naji, Mustafa al-Shannat and Shukri Abu al-Hosseen – were summoned for interrogation by Hamas’ Internal Security Force.

Democracy!

And, as I reported exclusively on Saturday night, Fatah Revolutionary Council members reportedly threatened to kill anyone who runs for office outside the official Fatah slate. Human rights activists criticized the report, saying it violates Palestinian basic laws.

Democracy!

People are still talking as if the planned Palestinian parliamentary elections will occur in May and the presidential elections in July.

I'd love to see the London bookmakers odds on either of those happening. Personally, I'd say the odds are 10-1 against for the parliamentary elections and 50-1 against for the presidential elections.

Cartoon of the Day: Bigotry is the new anti-racism

Continuing my series....

01/31 Links: NY Post Editorial: A new libel against Israel from Human Rights Watch; What drove Obama into Iran's arms?; Evidence Suggests Iranian Link to Blast Near Israeli Embassy in New Delhi

From Ian:

NYPost Editorial: A new libel against Israel from Human Rights Watch

Israel has led the world in rapidly vaccinating much of its population, so naturally the global left has to find fault: hence the drive to condemn Jerusalem for not taking responsibility for vaccinations in Gaza and the West Bank.

In a series of tweets, Human Rights Watch Executive Director Kenneth Roth accused Israel of racism for this supposed failure; a week later, Palestinian officials decided to join the blame game, announcing that Israel is responsible for vaccinating Palestinians despite past statements to the contrary.

In reality, as UN Watch’s Hillel Neuer notes, the 1995 Oslo II Accord designates responsibility for the health care and vaccinations of its people to the Palestinian Authority.

And while the two countries are supposed to cooperate in terms of handling epidemics, Palestinian Health Ministry officials admitted back in December that they didn’t ask for help in obtaining vaccines from Israel.

Top Palestinian officials routinely go to Israel for major medical care, but PA propaganda discourages it for everyone else, with dark hints that Jewish doctors will offer Arabs only substandard care — if they’re not secretly experimenting on Palestinian patients.

What drove Obama into Iran's arms?

From Obama’s perspective, Iran was the state with which to develop a relationship. The mullahs have the will, aggression and desire to destroy Israel, which they have expressed continuously. However, Iran’s nuclear ambitions posed a PR problem. Therefore, Obama relied on the belief that Iran could not be stopped, and as a result the US and some of its European partners negotiated a deal, which on the surface could be sold to a compliant and ever helpful main stream media, which in turn would sell it to the world’s public. Iran would agree not to develop a nuclear weapon for at least ten years, after which they would be free to do so. This could follow without any international interference. Obama, by then, would have “kicked the can down the road” for a future President to deal with along with the possible fate of Israel.

Whether Iran would comply didn’t really bother anyone, and clauses contained in the agreement limited inspections to civilian sites only whilst excluding military sites -- which is, of course, exactly where nuclear weapons would be developed. This was not only an awful and extremely bad agreement, which appeared to be Obama’s intention, but it has never been ratified by the US Congress. Part of the “deal” was that Obama would transfer huge amounts of cash to the Iranians in the amount of $150 to $170 billion. It remains questionable as to how much of it would find its way into Obama’s pocket. If this was so, a Democrat aligned media would be part of the conspiracy in covering it up.

During the signing and lead up to the JCPOA, I was always struck by the arrogance and cocksureness of Mohammad Javad Zarif so much on display I suspected and speculated that he possibly had Obama and Kerry in his pocket.

This whole scheme essentially threw the USA’s Sunni Arab allies “under the bus” abandoning them with Iran simultaneously threatening them. The great unintended irony, which had not been clearly thought through or even imagined, was that this would encourage the Sunni Arabs to make peace with Israel for their mutual defence as they no longer trusted America. As a result, these states were no longer bound by a ridiculous Palestinian-imposed veto. Their interests and defence obviously took precedence and under a Biden presidency, this situation would be even more relevant, with Obama very likely in the background pulling the Biden strings.

What appealed to Obama and his useless sidekick, John Kerry, was more the potential destruction of Israel, and perhaps to a lesser extent, limiting Iran’s nuclear ambitions. The JCPOA agreement said nothing about the development of missiles, which should have been a logical inclusion. Why something so fundamental was omitted remains a mystery. What should have occurred to them during negotiations was that a nuclear bomb has to be delivered. Iran has an antiquated air force which could not manage such a task. It could of course acquire aircraft from Russia or China. However, the obvious and only alternative was via a ballistic missile. This is precisely what Iran has been developing and testing for years.

Report: Evidence Suggests Iranian Link to Blast Near Israeli Embassy in New Delhi

Indian terrorist group Jaish-ul-Hind has claimed responsibility for the blast that took place near the Israeli embassy in New Delhi on Friday, local media reported.

No one was injured in the explosion, which took place on the 29th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between India and Israel.

According to the India.com news site, the investigation so far has recovered social-media chatter according to which Jaish-ul-Hind operatives boast about carrying out the attack.

The Indian Express reported on a police source as saying that the bomb appeared to have been planted in a flowerpot on the road divider. According to the report, a letter found on the scene, addressed to “Israel Embassy ambassador,” said that the blast was a “trailer,” suggesting that it was a prelude to future attacks against the embassy or other Israeli targets in the country.

The note also refers to “Iranian martyrs” Qassem Soleimani, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Quds Force commander killed in a US drone strike in Iran on Jan. 3, 2020, and Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, head of the Iranian military nuclear program, who was assassinated near Tehran on Nov. 27 in a hit for which Iran has blamed Israel.

New Delhi Blast: 2 Suspects Seen on Security Footage

The tightropes between Qatar, Hamas, the PA, and the Gulf

Qatar has announced that it will provide $30 million a month to Gaza for all of 2021, a total of $360 million in aid.

While the aid is generally earmarked for needy families and fuel for Gaza's power plant, part of it is also for paying Gaza employee salaries - meaning that it helps prop up Hamas.

Israel has been allowing this aid for years, walking a tightrope between helping Hamas and staving off a Gaza economic collapse.

Now that the Gulf states are resuming relations with Qatar, there are more tightropes being navigated.

The Palestinian Authority has been feeling marginalized after Israel forged relations with Gulf Arab states and wants to improve its own relations with Qatar. Mahmoud Abbas visited Qatar in December in a bid for some of those millions to be directed towards the Palestinian Authority.

For its part, Qatar sees itself as a potential broker for peace between Hamas and Fatah and wants to assert its influence that way. Its cooperation with Israel on aid to Gaza also positions it in a unique way to show its importance in the region.

Israel's allowance of Qatari aid to Gaza has not been without strings attached, either. Last summer Israel blocked Qatari aid as long as Gaza groups were launching firebombs via balloons from Gaza. Note that those balloon launches seem to have halted.

There are a lot of moving parts going on, between the Abraham Accords, the thawing of relations between Qatar and its neighbors, the new Biden administration and its desire to return to the JCPOA. The Palestinian issue still grabs headlines but it is not clear at all that anyone really cares about Palestinians besides in how they can profit from anti-Israel rhetoric - which is not nearly as effective as it was a year ago.

The vast majority - over 88% - of residents in the UAE are not citizens.

The UAE is now taking small steps to change that.

Yesterday, the Emirates announced that it will grant citizenship to some foreigners, if they can contribute significantly to UAE's society.

This includes investors, doctors, specialists, inventors, scientists, intellectuals, artists and their families.

There are a number of provisions - the applicants must be prominent and active in their fields, and they can lose citizenship if they breach the conditions.

For the past seven decades, members of the Arab League have generally agreed not to give citizenship to Palestinians - enshrined into law by the 1959 Arab League Decree #1547.

The UAE did allow a number of Palestinians to become citizens by royal decree in its early years after its founding in 1971, but since then it has been nearly impossible to become a citizen of the UAE for anyone.

Will the UAE defy the Arab League and allow Palestinian doctors and scientists to become full citizens?

Time will tell, but expect some prominent Palestinians to apply for citizenship, as they have whenever a loophole opened in Arab immigration laws that allowed them to become citizens.

And expect the Palestinian leadership to oppose anything that gives citizenship rights to Palestinians anywhere.