Tuesday, January 11, 2005

  • Tuesday, January 11, 2005
  • Elder of Ziyon
I'm sure that the press and Bush and Sharon have much to be optimistic about. All you have to do it close your eyes and click your heels three times, and say "Peace is around the corner. Peace is around the corner..." - EoZ

As the Palestinian Central Election Committee was holding a press conference in Ramallah on Monday to announce the final results of the election for the chairmanship of the Palestinian Authority, hundreds of students attended a rally organized by Hamas at Bir Zeit University, where they called for more suicide attacks against Israel.

'Oh suicide bomber, wrap yourself with an explosive belt and fill the scene with blood,' chanted a chorus of five male students at the rally, held by the Hamas-affiliated Islamic List to mark the ninth anniversary of the killing of Hamas bomb-maker Yehya Ayyash, better known as 'The Engineer.'

Green Hamas flags and large portraits of slain Hamas leaders Ahmed Yassin and Abdel Aziz Rantisi decorated the campus and the hall where some 500 activists gathered to honor the former university student responsible for a string of suicide bombings that killed at least 100 Israelis in the mid-90s.

Organizers said the timing of the parley was not linked to the election of Mahmoud Abbas (Abu Mazen) as Yasser Arafat's successor. Speakers refrained from making any reference to the election, pointing out the event, approved by the university administration, had been planned long before the vote. They also refused to comment on the results of the vote.

'Ayyash is alive and don't say that he's dead,' a speaker told the crowd, who responded by shouting 'Allahu Akbar! (God is great).' Another speaker described the Hamas bomb-maker as 'the engineer of death for those who deserved to die.'

The students also paid tribute to anther colleague, Izzaddin al-Masri, who carried out the suicide attack in Jerusalem's Sbarro restaurant in 2001, killing 15 people and wounding more than 100.
  • Tuesday, January 11, 2005
  • Elder of Ziyon

Monday, January 10, 2005

  • Monday, January 10, 2005
  • Elder of Ziyon
The results of a new demographic study of the Palestinians shows that:

1. Today, the Palestinian-Arab population of the West Bank (1.4MN) and Gaza (1MN)
totals 2.4 million, rather than the 3.8 million reported by the Palestinian Central
Bureau of Statistics
(PCBS).

2. A solid Jewish majority of 60% has been sustained – between the Jordan River
and the Mediterranean – since 1967.
A solid 80% Jewish majority has been maintained
within the "Green Line".

3. Long-Term demographic trends re-entrench the Jewish majority.

In other words, the "demographic time bomb" that is taken as a fact and as a reason why Israel has no choice but to give up territory is false.

There may or may not be other reasons, but demography is not one of them. The report shows that the assumption that Palestinians reproduce at one of the highest rates in the world is simply false. (Comments by EoZ)
  • Monday, January 10, 2005
  • Elder of Ziyon
(IsraelNN.com) Interestingly, 80 per cent of visitors from Britain described their visit as “excellent” or “very good” according to a new survey conducted by the firm Geocartographia during the first half of 2004.

This following a recent survey by the UK Daily Telegraph showing Britons have a largely negative opinion of Israel. Statistics were compiled from a sample of 1,769 British visitors. Thirty-six per cent of British respondents stated their visit was “excellent”, 44 per cent said it was “very good”, 17 per cent described their experience as “good” and three per cent called it “reasonable” or “poor”. In 2004, 140,000 tourists arrived from the United Kingdom, a 44 per cent rise over 2003. In 2005, Israel’s Ministry of Tourism expects an additional 20 per cent more British tourists.

In total, 14,000 tourists from around the world were participated in the survey. Eighty per cent of all tourists also described their visit to Israel as either “excellent” or “very good,” and, on average, assigned their satisfaction a value of 4.2 out of 5.

The survey reveals that 73 per cent of all tourists were not concerned about traveling to Israel and 95 per cent of them would encourage their friends to visit the country as well.
  • Monday, January 10, 2005
  • Elder of Ziyon
As Fatah supporters shot their rifles in the air in celebration of the outcome of the seven-candidate race, Mr. Abbas gave his first victory speech last night. Calling the election results 'a victory for Yasser Arafat and the entire Palestinian people,' Mr. Abbas proclaimed: 'The small jihad is over and the big jihad has begun. We are facing tough missions - how to build a state of security where people live a dignified life.'"

Remember how the pundits said that when Abbas make pro-terror statements during the campaign that it was only "rhetoric" to get elected? Well, he hasn't seemed to get the memo. - EoZ
  • Monday, January 10, 2005
  • Elder of Ziyon
Anyone who knows anything about Judaism knows that the Madonna-flavored version of Kabbalah is a joke. -EoZ

A senior figure in the controversial Kabbalah Centre - the sect championed by stars including Madonna and Demi Moore - seems likely to spark a storm of protest by saying Jews killed in the Holocaust brought their downfall upon themselves.

Eliyahu Yardeni, of the London Kabbalah Centre, made the astonishing claim to an undercover reporter investigating high-pressure sales techniques employed by the group, which promotes its own brand of beliefs, part ancient Jewish mysticism and part pseudo-science.

The probe also revealed how Kabbalah Centre representatives claimed bottles of 'healing' spring water sold by the group could help cure cancer - and how they sold a batch to a sufferer for hundreds of pounds.

Talking about the wartime massacre of the Jews, Mr Yardeni said: 'Just to tell you another thing about the six million Jews that were killed in the Holocaust: the question was that the Light was blocked. They didn't use Kabbalah.'

The claim provoked outrage from Kabbalah scholar Rabbi Imannual Schocket, from Ontario, Canada. He said: 'To me this is one of the most obscene statements anybody could possibly make.'

Genuine scholars of Kabbalah, which is a respected branch of ancient Jewish mysticism, reject the Kabbalah Centre as an opportunist offshoot of the faith with charismatic leaders who try to attract the rich and the vulnerable with the promise of health, wealth and happiness.

The Holocaust claim comes in a secretly-filmed BBC documentary. One undercover reporter, who has suffered from cancer, went to the London Kabbalah Centre - a �3.7million building off Oxford Street - seeking help, and was offered a package of remedies for the disease for �860.

The cost included nearly �400 for 10 cases of Kabbalah water, �150 for 'extra-strength' water and �289 for Zohar books - the Kabbalah 'bible'.

The Zohar is also said to have special powers which followers can benefit from by running a finger over the text as if reading Braille.

A second investigator, who worked undercover as a Kabbalah Centre volunteer for four months, was told how the Kabbalah water worked, with a devotee explaining: 'We start with the purest artesian water and then we do the various meditations, injecting energy into it.'

The Kabbalah Centre website explained that a process called Quantum Resonance Technology 'restructures the intermolecular binding of spring water'.

The investigation discovered the water actually comes from CJC Bottling, a bottling plant in Ontario, Canada, which was the subject of a public health investigation in 2002 into how its water was tested.

CJC was ordered to improve manufacturing techniques, though there was no suggestion that they ever sold polluted water.

The film also investigates the background of the sect's founder, 'Dr' Philip Berg, who is known to followers as the Rav. He enjoys a millionaire's lifestyle in Los Angeles.

The source of Mr Berg's 'doctorate' is not clear, but it is known that he was born Feivel Gruberger in New York, trained as a rabbi and worked as an insurance agent before deserting his first wife and seven children for second wife, Karen.

The couple then set up their first Kabbalah Centre in Tel Aviv. The lucrative marketing operation for the water, Zohar books, face-creams, candles, videos, and red string bracelets worn by followers came later.

The organisation claims to have Kabbalah Centres in 40 cities worldwide and to be a non-profit-making organisation.

The centre has launched a US$1m campaign asking followers to donate money so it can send its own brand of Zohar books and water to the victims of the Asian tsunami.

In Israel, the authorities have refused to give the charity a certificate of proper management for three years running because of accounting inadequacies, and in Britain the Charity Commissioners have criticised the centre's accounts for 'significant shortcomings in transparency'.
  • Monday, January 10, 2005
  • Elder of Ziyon
(Hebrew article in Maariv)
The London-based daily Al-Quds al-Arabi reported that Abu Mazen funneled at least $100,000 to wanted terrorists during the PA election campaign.
The paper revealed that Zakariya Zubeidi, the fugitive leader of the Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigades in Jenin, and other Fatah leaders gave Abu Mazen a letter expressing their interest in joining the PA security services.
Such a step would mean the disbanding of the Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigades.
Meanwhile, the London-based daily Al-Sharq al-Awsat reported that the American government is concerned about Abu Mazen's close relationship with armed elements and is refusing to invite him to Washington until it receives clarifications.

I'm sure he only gave the money to moderate terrorists. -EoZ

Sunday, January 09, 2005

  • Sunday, January 09, 2005
  • Elder of Ziyon
I've been chuckling over how readers suddenly found this blog, not for the 427 articles on Israel and terrorism but for the one of me answering questions about Judaism. I still have no idea how this happened.

At any rate, I want to emphasize that while I love answering questions and I love giving advice (I happen to love the religion as well!), I ain't no rabbi and serious questions that need accurate and sensitive answers should go to an Ask the Rabbi site, such as

Aish.com Ask the Rabbi
(requires registration)
Ohr Somayach Ask the Rabbi
Arutz Sheva Ask the Rabbi

But I will be happy to do what I can, for what it is worth.

Thanks!
-EoZ
  • Sunday, January 09, 2005
  • Elder of Ziyon
Just for fun I decided to Google "Abbas moderate" in news.google.com. I came back with 3760 articles, most of which sounded like:

"Early results showed the moderate candidate Mahmoud Abbas overwhelmingly..."
"
The ones who emerged with relatively moderate views, like Abbas, gravitated toward the mainstream Fatah..."
"
Abbas, a moderate Palestinian leader advocating non-violent struggle for an independent state..."
"
Moderate Fatah faction candidate Mahmoud Abbas is the front-runner to succeed him in the first Palestinian election since...."
"
Abbas has staked out a moderate, pragmatic approach to dealings with Israel, saying he wants to open negotiations with Sharon..."
"
Mr. Abbas, a moderate who has raised hopes of a renewed peace process by calling for a "demilitarization" of the intifada..."
"
In the last week, Abbas, a moderate opposed to armed struggle with Israel, has sought to woo younger, more militant Palestinians by toughening his rhetoric..."
"
Saadi believes the likely election of moderate businessman Mahmoud Abbas..."
"
Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas is a moderate who deserves to succeed the late Yasser Arafat in Sunday's presidential election."

I am especially tickled at the many articles that say, as a fact, that the Holocaust denying Abbas, who referred to Israel as "the Zionist enemy" and said he will defend terrorists from Israel, who has shown not the slightest deviation from the maximal Palestinian positions on the "right of return" or the borders of an eventual Palestinian state - is a "moderate."

Now, how many articles can be found that refer to Ariel Sharon, who is making plans to give up parts of biblical Israel unilaterally, who has in many speeches (never reported by the press) reached out to Palestinians who want peace, whose army has sustained incredible casualties to avoid hurting Palestinian civilians, who has accepted a two-state solution - all very far from the right-wing Israeli positions - how many can be found to call him a "moderate"?

Words matter. When people read for years that Sharon is a "right-wing hawk" and that Abbas (and even Arafat) is a "moderate pragmatist", is it any wonder that the world hates Israel?


  • Sunday, January 09, 2005
  • Elder of Ziyon
This seems to be the most popular commercial in Israel nowadays, spoofing a famous scene from "Pulp Fiction":

Vincent: Do you know what they call a Quarter Pounder in Israel?

Jules: No.

Vincent: A Mc-Ro-yal

Jules: A Mc-Roy-yal?

Vincent: That's right. And guess what they call the pita bread with the turkey meat?

Jules: No

Vincent: A McShah-wah-rma

Jules: So a guy just walks into McDonald's and says, "I'll have a McShwarma, please."

Vincent: Yeah....but they don't say "please" in Israel.

Jules: Ha Ha Ha

You can see the commercial

- Here to watch it
- Here to download



  • Sunday, January 09, 2005
  • Elder of Ziyon

05.01.06.ZionistEnemy-X.gif

  • Sunday, January 09, 2005
  • Elder of Ziyon

MEMRI hits another home run - EoZ

Following practically all international events of importance, conspiracy theories are raised in the Arab and Muslim worlds. This occurred most recently following the Asian tsunami. Some of these conspiracy theories focused, as they often do, on allegations that it was a plot by the U.S. and Israel. Others speculated that the tsunami was a divine punishment for sins, including that of celebrating Christmas. The following are speeches and articles which appeared in the Arab media raising conspiracy theories about the cause of the tsunami; more will be posted on the MEMRI TV Project website (www.memritv.org) in the coming days:

Palestinian Friday Sermon by Sheik Mudeiris: The Tsunami is Allah's Revenge at Bangkok Corruption

The following are excerpts from a Friday mosque sermon aired on Palestinian Authority TV by Sheik Ibrahim Mudeiris, which was recorded and translated by the MEMRI TV Monitor Project:

" What happened there, in South-East Asia … we ask God to have mercy upon all the martyrs - for he who dies by drowning is a martyr. We ask God to have mercy upon all the Muslims who died there. Allah willing, they are martyrs. But, don't you think that the wrath of the earth and the wrath of the sea should make us reflect? Tens of thousands dead, and many predict that the number will be in the hundreds of thousands. We ask God for forgiveness. When oppression and corruption increase, the law of equilibrium applies. I can see in your eyes that you are wondering what the 'universal law of equilibrium' is. This law is a divine law. If people are remiss in implementing God's law and in being zealous and vengeful for His sake, Allah sets his soldiers in action to take revenge.

"The oppression and corruption caused by America and the Jews have increased. Have you heard of these beaches that are called 'tourists' paradise?' You have all probably heard of Bangkok. We read about it, and knew it as the center of corruption on the face of this earth. Over there, there are Zionist and American investments. Over there they bring Muslims and others to prostitution. Over there, there are beaches, which they dubbed 'tourists' paradise,' while only a few meters away, the locals live in hell on earth. They cannot make ends meet, while a few meters away there is a paradise, 'tourists' paradise.'

"Do you want the earth to turn a blind eye to the corrupt oppressors? Do you want the sea… Do you want the sea to lower its waves in the face of corruption that it sees with its own eyes?! No, the zero hour has come." [1]

Advisor to Saudi Arabia's Justice Minister: The Nations were Destroyed for Lying, Sinning, and being Infidels

Ibrahim Al-Bashar, an advisor to Saudi Arabia's Justice Minister, argued on the Saudi Arabian/UAE Al-Majd TV channel that the sins of the affected countries caused the tsunami:

"Whoever reads the Koran, given by the Maker of the World, can see how these nations were destroyed. There is one reason: they lied, they sinned, and [they] were infidels. Whoever studies the Koran can see this is the result…

"Some intellectuals, philosophers, and journalists - may Allah show them the straight path – say this is the wrath of nature. Whoever is angry must have a soul and a brain in order to act out his anger. Does the earth have a brain and a body with a soul? They talk about the wrath of nature, or else they claim that what happened was due to a fissure in the depths of the earth, which the earth's crust could not bear. They connect cosmic matters.

"But who is the one that cracked it, split it, and commanded it to quake?! Why don't we ask that question? Who is the one that sent the wind? Who sent the floods? But they tell you that it was due to the ebb and tide, and that the barometric depressions are to blame. Who commanded them to do so?

"These countries, in which these things occurred – don't they refrain from adopting Allah's law, which is a form of heresy? Man-made laws have been chosen over Allah's law, which has been deemed unsuitable to judge people?! Whoever does not act according to Allah's law is a heretic, that's what Allah said in the Koran. Don't these countries have witchcraft, sorcery, deceitfulness, and abomination?" [2]

Saudi Professor Sheikh Fawzan Al-Fawzan: Allah Punishes for Homosexuality and Fornication at Christmas

The following are excerpts from an interview on Saudi/UAE's Al-Majd TV with Sheikh Fawzan Al-Fawzan, a professor at the Al-Imam University, which was recorded and translated by the MEMRI TV Monitor Project:

"These great tragedies and collective punishments that are wiping out villages, towns, cities, and even entire countries, are Allah's punishments of the people of these countries, even if they are Muslims.

"Some of our forefathers said that if there is usury and fornication in a certain village, Allah permits its destruction. We know that at these resorts, which unfortunately exist in Islamic and other countries in South Asia, and especially at Christmas, fornication and sexual perversion of all kinds are rampant. The fact that it happened at this particular time is a sign from Allah. It happened at Christmas, when fornicators and corrupt people from all over the world come to commit fornication and sexual perversion. That's when this tragedy took place, striking them all and destroyed everything. It turned the land into wasteland, where only the cries of the ravens are heard. I say this is a great sign and punishment on which Muslims should reflect.

"All that's left for us to do is to ask for forgiveness. We must atone for our sins, and for the acts of the stupid people among us and improve our condition. We must fight fornication, homosexuality, usury, fight the corruption on the face of the earth, and the disregard of the lives of protected people." [3]

Saudi Cleric Muhammad Al-Munajjid: Allah Finished Off the Richter Scale in Revenge of Infidel Criminals

The following are excerpts from an interview on Saudi/UAE's Al-Majd TV with Saudi cleric Muhammad Al-Munajjid, which was recorded and translated by the MEMRI TV Monitor Project:

"The problem is that the [Christian] holidays are accompanied by forbidden things, by immorality, abomination, adultery, alcohol, drunken dancing, and … and revelry. A belly dancer costs 2500 pounds per minute and a singer costs 50,000 pounds per hour, and they hop from one hotel to another from night to dawn. Then he spends the entire night defying Allah.

"Haven't they learned the lesson from what Allah wreaked upon the coast of Asia, during the celebration of these forbidden? At the height of immorality, Allah took vengeance on these criminals.

"Those celebrating spent what they call 'New Year's Eve' in vacation resorts, pubs, and hotels. Allah struck them with an earthquake. He finished off the Richter scale. All nine levels gone. Tens of thousands dead.

"It was said that they were tourists on New Year's vacation who went to the crowded coral islands for the holiday period, and then they were struck by this earthquake, caused by the Almighty Lord of the worlds. He showed them His wrath and His strength. He showed them His vengeance. Is there anyone learning the lesson? Is it impossible that we will be struck like them? Why do we go their way? Why do we want to be like them, with their holidays, their forbidden things, and their heresy?" [4]

Egyptian Nationalist Weekly: U.S.-Israel-India Nuclear Testing May have Caused Asian Tsunami; The Goal: Testing how to Liquidate Humanity

The Egyptian nationalist weekly Al-Usbu' has published an investigation by correspondent Mahmoud Bakri, titled "Humanity in Danger," claiming that the earthquake and tsunami in Asia may have resulted from joint nuclear testing by the U.S., Israel, and India. The following are excerpts from the article:

"Was [the earthquake] caused by American, Israeli, and Indian nuclear testing on 'the day of horror?' Why did the 'Ring of Fire' explode?

"… According to researchers' estimates, there are two possible [explanations] for what happened. The first is a natural, divine move, because the region is in the 'Ring of Fire,' a region subject to this destructive type of earthquakes.

" The second possibility is that it was some kind of human intervention that destabilized the tectonic plates, an intervention that is caused only in nuclear experiments and explosions. What strengthens this direction [of thought] are the tectonic plates [under] Indian soil [ sic ], since in the recent few months, India conducted over seven nuclear tests to strengthen its nuclear program against the Pakistani [nuclear program].

"[Various] reports have proven that the tectonic plates in India and Australia collided with the tectonic plates of Europe and Asia. [It has also been proven] that India recently obtained high[-level] nuclear technology, and a number of Israeli nuclear experts and several American research centers were [involved in preparing this].

"The three most recent tests appeared to be genuine American and Israeli preparations to act together with India to test a way to liquidate humanity. In the[ir] most recent test, they began destroying entire cities over extensive areas. Although the nuclear explosions were carried out in desert lands, tens of thousands of kilometers away from populated areas, they had a direct effect on these areas.

"Since 1992, many research [institutes] monitoring earthquakes across the world, such as the International Center for the [Study] of Earthquakes [sic] in Britain and in Turkey and other countries, [indicated] the importance of no nuclear testing in the 'Ring of Fire,' where the most recent earthquake struck, because this region is thought to be one of the most geologically active regions over millions of years. Thus, the international centers have always classified it as one of the most dangerous regions [and] likely to shift at any given moment, even without human interference.

"But the scientific reports stated that there had been nuclear activity in this region – particularly after America's recent decision to rely largely on the Australian desert – part of which is inside the 'Ring of Fire' – for its secret nuclear testing.

"Similarly, many international reports spoke of joint Indian-Israeli nuclear activity. Moreover, only this year Arab and Islamic countries intervened more than three times in the U.S. to stop this joint nuclear activity.

"Nevertheless, although so far it has not been proven that secret Indian-Israeli nuclear testing is what caused the destructive earthquake, there is evidence that the recent nuclear tests, the exchange of nuclear experts between India and Israel, and the American pressure on Pakistan regarding its nuclear cooperation with Asian and Islamic countries [by providing India with advanced nuclear technology in an attempt to stop Pakistani activity] – all these pose a big question mark regarding the causes of the severe earthquake in Asia.

"Scientific studies prove that there is increasing nuclear activity under the waters of the oceans and seas … and that America is the first country in the world responsible for this activity. This raises an enormous question mark… What is puzzling is that all the previous earthquakes did not cause such great destruction [as this one], particularly [in light of the fact that] the earthquake's center was some 40 kilometers under the seabed of the Indian Ocean.

"One of the American researchers, Merrills Kinsey, [5] pointed out an important fact in the scientific report that he prepared after the last disaster, which is that the center of an earthquake that took place some 40 kilometers under the ocean floor could not have caused such destruction unless nuclear testing had been conducted close to the tectonic plates in these countries, or unless several days previously there had been [nuclear] activity that caused these plates to shift and collide – which constitutes a danger to all humanity, not only to the inhabitants of these countries…" [6]


[1] Palestinian Authority TV, December 31, 2005. To view the clip, visit http://memritv.org/Search.asp?ACT=S9&P1=451.

[2] Al-Majd TV (Saudi Arabia/UAE), January 5, 2005. To view the clip, visit http://memritv.org/Search.asp?ACT=S9&P1=462.

[3] Al-Majd TV (Saudi Arabia/UAE), December 31, 2004. To view the clip, visit http://memritv.org/Search.asp?ACT=S9&P1=459.

[4] Al-Majd TV (Saudi Arabia/UAE), January 1, 2005. To view the clip, visit http://memritv.org/Search.asp?ACT=S9&P1=452.

[5] The name was not identified by MEMRI.

[6] Al-Usbu' (Egypt), January 1, 2005.

Saturday, January 08, 2005

  • Saturday, January 08, 2005
  • Elder of Ziyon
Former American President Jimmy Carter, right, and former Republican Governor of New Jersey Christine Todd Whitman pay their respects at the grave of  late Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat at his former headquarters in the West Bank town of Ramallah , Saturday Jan. 8, 2005. Carter and Christine Todd Whitman arrived on behalf of the National Democratic Institute and the Carter Center as an observer for the upcoming Palestinian presidential elections. Palestinians are going to the polls on Jan. 9 to elect the successor for the late Yasser Arafat. (AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko)




Former American President Jimmy Carter, right, and former Republican Governor of New Jersey Christine Todd Whitman (news - web sites) pay their respects at the grave of late Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat (news - web sites) at his former headquarters in the West Bank town of Ramallah , Saturday Jan. 8, 2005. Carter and Christine Todd Whitman arrived on behalf of the National Democratic Institute and the Carter Center as an observer for the upcoming Palestinian presidential elections.

Friday, January 07, 2005

  • Friday, January 07, 2005
  • Elder of Ziyon
When the three doctors, Gabi Idan, Jacob Vortman and Shuki Vitek, developed the Popeye - a precision guided air-to-surface missile - for the Israel Defense Forces, they never dreamed that the technologies used to develop it would be integrated 25 years later into the medical field and form the basis of two of the world's leading innovations in 2004.
The Wall Street Journal recently announced the winners of its 2004 Technology Innovation awards, and two Israeli companies, in which Idan, Vortman and Vitek were involved, ranked among the top three winners out of 120 entries. Given Imaging of Yokneam, which developed a capsule containing the PillCam, a video camera that photographs the digestive tract, took second. And InSightec of Tirat Carmel, which developed ExAblate 2000, a focused ultrasound system combined with MRI guidance for removing malignant growths in a noninvasive procedure, took third.

Both products went on the market during the past two years, and have been met with success: PillCam sales are expected to reach $60-80 million this year, while ExAblate 2000, which received U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval just two months ago, reached sales of $10 million in 2004, its first year on the market. According to InSightec forecasts, sales in 2007 will exceed $100 million.

Vortman attributes the commercial success of his and his colleagues' inventions to the years the three of them spent at the Arms Development Authority (now known as Rafael). Idan developed the homing seekers for the Popeye missile and the Gil anti-tank missile. Vortman, who has a Ph.D. in electrooptics, is considered a pioneer in the development of night-vision systems for the defense establishment. Vitek developed at a later stage the Black Anchor, the target missile used in the trials of the Arrow missile.
  • Friday, January 07, 2005
  • Elder of Ziyon
What goes on 'over there'
By Natan Sharansky

Albert Einstein once said that insanity is doing the same thing over and over again expecting to achieve a different result. We may want to keep this observation in mind when thinking about whether the upcoming Palestinian elections present a new hope for peace.
First, about those elections. While Israel should certainly do everything possible to enable Palestinians to vote, we must not delude ourselves into thinking that these elections will be democratic. Free elections can only occur in a society where people are free to express their opinions without fear of being punished for them. When there is no protection of the right to dissent, when a regime controls the press, when voters and potential opponents are intimidated, what happens in the voting booth matters little. That monitors will probably declare these elections free of fraud should also not earn them a democratic imprimatur. Soviet elections were also free of fraud. There was simply only one party on the ballot.

Fortunately, President Bush is viewing these elections with the proper perspective, asserting that they are "not the sign that democracy has arrived." Rather, he said, they are "the beginning of a process."

Whether this process will be a successful one will depend in large measure on whether we have learned from the mistakes of the past. Oslo failed because its architects and the democratic world that supported Oslo cared little about how Arafat ruled. The fact that Arafat was constructing a society built on fear was not seen as an impediment to peace. On the contrary, Arafat's iron-fisted rule was considered an asset. As Yitzhak Rabin put it, Arafat would fight terror "without a Supreme Court, without B'Tselem, and without bleeding heart liberals."

But this view is fundamentally mistaken. What goes on "over there" is very much our business. Regimes based on fear rather than popular consent need external enemies to sustain their illegitimate rule and therefore turn the societies they control into breeding grounds for terror and hatred. If we return to the Oslo mindset of not caring about what happens within Palestinian society, no peace process will succeed.

While the new Palestinian Authority leader's coronation at the ballot box does not give him the right to speak on behalf of the Palestinians, he can prove himself worthy of his new title by governing on behalf of the Palestinians. That means protecting dissent rather than crushing it, providing a good education for Palestinian youth rather than using schools and the media for incitement, building decent housing for those living in refugee camps rather than using them as pawns in a political struggle against Israel, and enabling an independent middle class to emerge rather than seeking to control all aspects of Palestinian economic life.

Will this new leader govern on behalf of the Palestinians? Much depends on whether the free world, including Israel, insists that he does. Unfortunately, the pervasive assumption among policymakers and diplomats is that what is needed now is not to press the new PA leader to implement democratic reforms but rather to strengthen this "moderate" so that he can fight extremists and make peace with Israel.

Arafat used this lack of concern for how he ruled to consolidate his power by strengthening hatred toward Israel and at the same time avoiding making concessions that he argued might "weaken" him and bring Hamas to power. If the free world adopts the same approach toward Abu Mazen or any other Palestinian leader, the results will be equally disastrous.

Abu Mazen's promise not to confront terror groups, his demand for a so-called right of return for Palestinians to pre-1967 Israel and his railing against the "Zionist enemy" have been dismissed as empty campaign rhetoric. But it may reflect a belief that, just as was true in the past, a free world afraid of "weakening" him will not force him to change course.

But there are also reasons to be optimistic. Foremost among them is Bush's recognition that the key to peace lies in the expansion of freedom and opportunity within Palestinian society. As the leader of the free world, Bush can play a critical role in advancing peace by linking American support for the PA to the regime's willingness to build such a society. With an American president willing to hold Abu Mazen accountable, the chances of inducing real change within Palestinian society are very real.

I am less confident, however, that Israel's government, whatever its eventual composition, will take advantage of this unique opportunity to begin a real peace process based on helping the Palestinians build a free society. Instead, we are divided among those who are determined to return to Oslo, those who endorse unilateralism and those who refuse any concessions under any circumstances.

But none of these approaches will advance peace because none of them will help change what is going on "over there." By stopping the insane policy of supporting dictatorship and instead focusing on helping the Palestinians build a free society, I am confident that we can forge a peace that will stand the test of time.

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This blog may be a labor of love for me, but it takes a lot of effort, time and money. For 20 years and 40,000 articles I have been providing accurate, original news that would have remained unnoticed. I've written hundreds of scoops and sometimes my reporting ends up making a real difference. I appreciate any donations you can give to keep this blog going.

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