Elder Of Ziyon - Israel News

Thursday, February 09, 2012

IDF foiled 5 kidnap attempts since Shalit was freed

From the IDF:

Since the soldier abducted by Hamas terrorists and kept in captivity in the Gaza Strip for five years, SFC Gilad Shalit, was returned to Israel, there were over five attempts to kidnap soldiers in northern Israel.

"There is a direct link between Shalit's return and the kidnapping attempts," said Northern Command's military police commander, Lt. Col. Nir Golan and explained: "Terror organizations know that Israel will pay a high price for kidnapped soldiers and their motivation to abduct additional soldiers is on the rise."

The abduction attempts were reported by soldiers. After such an attempt is reported, it is conveyed to the IDF criminal investigation division for further investigation. "The reports that could not be proven false are considered to be kidnapping attempts," said Lt. Col. Golan.

The military police began intensified preventative operations, such as mock abductions and raising awareness among soldiers. "Every day there are undercover teams looking for hitchhiking soldiers," said Lt. Col. Golan.

I was curious as to who would be attempting to kidnap soldiers in the north - Hezbollah? Hamas? Israeli Arabs?

I asked the IDF spokesperson and the reply I received was "The kidnapping attempts were executed by Israeli Arabs, sympathizers with terror organizations. That's all we can say about the subject currently."

More on Hezbollah denying taking orders from Iran

As a followup to my post about how Hassan Nasrallah is denying that Hezbollah takes any orders from Iran, I got an email from Zach that showed:

The Wilayat al-Faqih claims worldly, political and social authority over all Shia. As scholar Hassan Mneimneh recently put it in an article on the Arab reception of the concept: “Wilayat al-Faqih entails the recognition of the absolute worldly authority of the Islamic Republic of Iran’s Supreme Leader (Rahbar), in whom the ultimate executive, legislative, and judiciary powers [are] supposed to reside.”

Hezbollah’s own experience lends support to Mneimneh’s remarks. Not only did Hezbollah seek Khamenei’s permission to enter parliamentary politics in 1992, but the party’s deputy secretary general, Naim Qassem, has written in his book on Hezbollah that “the wali al-faqih alone possesses the authority to decide war and peace.”

And:

Yahya Rahim Safavi, former commander of the Revolutionary Guards and military adviser to Iran’s Supreme Guide, Ali Khamenei, declared that in case of an Israeli attack on Iran, the Iranian retaliation will come from Lebanon, “because all the Zionist cities are within the range of our ally Hezbollah's Katyushas.”

And in a Q&A with Hezbollah's former secretary general, Sheikh Sobhi Tufayli:

Analysts have repeatedly raised the possibility of an armed conflict with Israel if the Assad regime were to fall. Do you believe Hezbollah would be willing to wage another war with Israel?

Tufayli: This decision is neither in the hands of Hezbollah nor the Lebanese people. Iran will play the Lebanese card according to its own interests. War is a possible option; however, I do not foresee a conflict in southern Lebanon for now.

Do you believe Iran’s political goals in Lebanon have changed over the past decade? Has Iran abandoned its Wilayat al-Faqih [Guardianship of the Jurist] project?

Tufayli: No country in the world will ever forgo its strategic interests. Iran will not abandon its dream of creating a Wilayat al-Faqih in Lebanon.

Again, it is disappointing to see terror leaders and would-be genocidal murderers who are so willing to lie. What ever happened to morality?

Gaza power plant running out of fuel - but not because of Israel

Palestine Today reports that "the city of Gaza will sink into darkness within 72 hours" if no fuel is found to run the power plant.

The Energy Authority in Gaza sent out a distress call to the Arab and Muslim countries for urgent intervention to resolve the crisis.

Of course, they can get plenty of fuel - from Israel. It used to be that this was exactly where they received the heavy diesel to run the power plant. But about a year ago they started refusing to use that evil Zionist fuel and instead relied on receiving the fuel from Egypt.

It is nice to see that Hamas is so principled that it will happily make its own people miserable and put them in danger rather than accept fuel from the hated Zionist entity.

Shhhh! Jews and Arabs from territories plant trees - together!

Here's another example of co-existence that the Leftists don't want people to see:

School children from the Efrat settlement and residents of the neighboring Palestinian village of Jurat al-Shama planted trees together in an initiative that promoted co-existence in the West Bank, Yedioth Ahronoth reported Wednesday.

The event, held on the Jewish holiday of Tu B'Shvat, aimed to block the hazardous dust that is being disseminated by a nearby tree-processing plant.

The factory's owner and a resident of Jurat al-Shama, Abu-Taled, relented recently to residents' complaints and built a stone wall that blocked the dust; but the barrier proved bothersome to both the Palestinian and Jewish residents of the area.

When a new traffic circle was installed at the entrance to Efrat recently, Mayor Oded Ravivi decided to level the land between the plant and the settlement, and replace the wall with a small forest.

"We met with Abu-Taled, and agreed to plant a grove on Tu B'Shvat in order to block the dust," Ravivi said. "Abu-Taled was very enthusiastic, and promised to bring friends and employees.

"This is how we could fulfill the mitzvah while also tightening our ties and work towards peaceful co-existence," he said, refering to the Jewish custom of planting trees on the nature-oriented holiday.

According to Ravivi, the sides are currently considering the possibility that Efrat security personnel would guard the factory at night, as part of the effort to cultivate a neighborly relationship.

To the Israel-hating Left, "co-existence" means attending conferences where Jews and Arabs can both attack Israel equally.

They hate real cooperation and co-existence between Jews and Arabs in Judea and Samaria, because it exposes them as hypocrites.

The idea of Jews with kippot working next to Arabs in keffiyehs does not make them smile. On the contrary, it makes their blood boil.

Proving once again that the Israel-hating Left is anything but liberal.

Analysis of Fatah-Hamas Doha agreement (JCPA)

JCPA's Jonathan D. Halevi has published an analysis of the latest agreement between Hamas and Fatah signed at Doha, and it is a nice expansion of things I have been writing as well.

The agreement makes Abbas the supreme authority for all PA institutions. In addition to heading Fatah, Abbas serves as leader of the PLO, chairman of the PA, and soon as Palestinian prime minister as well. Although appointing “the president” as prime minister contravenes Palestinian basic law, it served as a compromise to overcome Fatah-Hamas disagreement on this issue.

Although the words sound weighty, their practical significance is small since the Doha Declaration, similar to the Cairo reconciliation agreement that preceded it, does not express genuine Hamas recognition of Abbas’ leadership or his authority as leader of the Palestinian people. Instead, it is merely verbal, expedient recognition for tactical reasons, intended to enable Hamas’ official entry into the PLO in the framework of new elections for the Palestinian National Council and to pave the way for presidential and parliamentary elections.

The Hamas leaders are trying to implement the strategy of the Arab Spring in the Palestinian arena. They assume they will win an overwhelming majority in the elections to the representative Palestinian institutions and, thereby, complete their historic takeover of the Palestinian national movement. In other words, they view Abbas as the doorman who opens the gates to the Trojan horse.

Hamas sees no political significance in the envisaged Abbas-headed transition government. This is evident from the fact that its powers are limited to carrying out the presidential and parliamentary elections and working to rehabilitate Gaza. From Abbas’ perspective, his appointment as prime minister, in addition to president, will enable him to maintain the international recognition of the Palestinian government despite the agreement with Hamas, and give him room to maneuver in contacts with the international community, both politically and in terms of keeping the aid money flowing.

The Doha Declaration, like previous Fatah-Hamas agreements, emphasizes the need to implement the agreements between the sides – once again demonstrating the difficulty of achieving institutional unity in the Palestinian arena in light of Hamas’ declared ambition to assume senior status in representing the Palestinian people. The two sides will have to show great creativity to overcome the many obstacles facing the holding of elections, from unifying the separate civilian and security institutions in the West Bank and Gaza, to budget allocations.

Both sides have a basic interest in joining forces. Hamas, as noted, sees the move as an opportunity to attain seniority and rebuild its infrastructure in the West Bank. Fatah is drawn into the reconciliation by force of circumstances and awareness of the lessons and implications of the Arab Spring, which has led to the loss of its Egyptian support and the rise in power of the Muslim Brotherhood, the parent-movement of Hamas. It appears that the Fatah leaders prefer swimming with the current to sinking beneath it. Abbas thereby buys himself some quiet for an interim period. When it ends, though, he will likely find himself without assets and in a minority in the representative institutions of the Palestinian national movement.

Abbas’ cooperation with Mashaal, and his uncompromising refusal to meet with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, illustrates the strategic choice he has made. He does not prefer the path of a political settlement but, rather, to link up with Hamas and the other regional forces emerging in the Arab Spring and thereby use them as a force multiplier against Israel without having to offer political concessions. The release of the 64 prisoners is not only a gesture to Hamas but also an implicit message that the security cooperation with Israel is secondary in Abbas’ eyes to the old-new alliance with Hamas.

BDS hypocrites (poster)

As I noted last year, BDSers want you to boycott tons of exports of strawberries, peppers and cherry tomatoes grown by Palestinian Arab farmers - simply to hurt the Israeli exporter they rely on to reach the European markets.

These hypocrites would rather see thousands of Arab farmers unemployed.

Pakistan official hints they would support Iran in a war

From The Sun:

Pakistan's High Commissioner to Britain Wajid Shamsul Hasan told The Sun in an exclusive interview that his country's relations with America are at their lowest ebb....

On Iran, Mr Hasan said: "We would not like Israel to attack any country, irrespective of whether it's Iran or any nuclear country. We wouldn't like to be seen as part of Israel's campaign against any country. If Israel attacks Iran, it will have an impact on Pakistan as well.

"We will have to safeguard our own interests. We also have a Shia population in Pakistan who will not take it lying down."

He warned that India and Gulf countries could also get involved in any conflict.

Edgar Davidson thinks his statement is even worse.

UPDATE: From AP a few days ago:

A European diplomat based in Pakistan, permitted to speak only under condition of anonymity, said that if Israel attacks, Islamabad will have no choice but to support any Iranian retaliation. That raises the specter of putting a nuclear-armed Pakistan at odds with Israel, widely believed to have its own significant nuclear arsenal.

(h/t Yoel)

Book that debunks "Protocols" translated to Farsi

From ITIC:

On February 8, 2012 the Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center posted a 400-page Farsi translation of Hadassa Ben-Itto's book The Lie That Wouldn't Die: The Protocols of the Elders of Zion. It can be accessed at http://terrorism-info.com/book/ The Introduction includes a section written by the author specifically for Iranians.

Judge Ben-Itto's book has already been translated into ten languages: Hebrew, English, German, Russian, Spanish, Dutch, Romanian, Hungarian, Bulgarian and Arabic. The Arabic translation was issued by Kul Shi Publishers, Haifa, in July 2010 and posted on the ITIC website, and was widely reviewed by the Arab media.

...In Iran, the Protocols were issued several times either by the regime or by institutions affiliated with it. The first was in the summer of 1978 during the events which led to the Islamic Revolution, and they were used as a weapon against the Shah, Israel and the Jews. In 1985 a new edition was printed and widely distributed by the Islamic Propagation Organization of Tehran's department for international relations. A foundation called "The Shrine of the Imam Reza" in Mashhad funded an edition which was published in 1994, and excerpts appeared in the Iranian media. The Islamic Propagation Organization's edition was also displayed at the book fair in Frankfurt in 2005.

One of the versions of The Protocols was translated from Arabic into Farsi by Hamid Reza Sheikhi and published in Iran by the Islamic Research Foundation with the title The Protocols of the Elders of Zion: World Zionism's Work Plan. The third edition of that version was issued in Iran in 2005-6 and catalogued in the Iranian national library (No. 1062209). It was a Farsi translation of a version edited and translated by Ajaj Nuwayhid, a Lebanese Druze (his translation was published in several versions in Beirut and Damascus and circulated throughout the Arab-Muslim world, including the Palestinian Authority).2

Disseminating The Protocols and its themes are part of the Iranian regime's policy of anti-Semitism, which includes Holocaust denial, the call for the destruction of the State of Israel, and hate propaganda directed at Israel and the Jewish people. Iran also exports its anti-Semitism to the West, and example of which was the international book fair held in Frankfurt in 2005, where Iran sold a selection of its anti-Israeli books, some of them in English.

Judge Ben-Itto's book traces the roots of The Protocols and their circulation from Russia to Europe and throughout the world. The book proves that The Protocols were plagiarized.

The translation of Hadassa Ben-Itto's book into Farsi is particularly important. For the first time since the Second World War, The Protocols of the Elders of Zion have been used as a strategic weapon in the hands of a state regime, in this case the Iranian regime as part of its deliberate plan to destroy the State of Israel. Moreover, the existence of "the Jewish conspiracy: to take over the world has been made part of Iranian perception to the point where it is considered absolute, irrefutable truth.

The Farsi translation of The Lie That Wouldn't Die sets a precedent in exposing the Iranian reader to a new perspective on The Protocols, completely different from what he has become accustomed to. The book was written by a judge and involved vast amounts of careful research. It is easy to read and presents every Iranian reader from whom the truth is important with the genuine facts behind The Protocols.

Any Iranians who want to read the book can find the whole thing here.

By the way, Abbas becoming prime minister violates PA law

From the Jerusalem Post:

Palestinians across the political spectrum on Tuesday criticized the Qatar-sponsored Hamas-Fatah reconciliation agreement according to which Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas would also serve as prime minister of an interim unity government.

They pointed out that it was Abbas who in March 2003 called for amending the Palestinian Basic Law so that the PA president would not be in charge of the government.

Backed by the Americans and Europeans, Abbas then sought to limit the powers of his predecessor, Yasser Arafat, who also served as the de facto prime minister.

On March 10, 2003, the Palestinian Legislative Council approved the proposed amendment to the Basic Law, creating the position of a PA prime minister.

The hope back then was that the changes in the Basic Law would lead to the separation of the powers of the president and the prime minister.

By agreeing to be prime minister of a unity government, Abbas is acting in violation of the same amendment to the Basic law that he fought to pass 12 years ago.

Abbas supporters, however, defended the move, arguing that ending the power struggle with Hamas was “more important than respecting any law.”

This is not the first time that Abbas has acted in violation of the Palestinian Basic Law.

In June 2007, following the collapse of the Fatah-Hamas unity government and the Islamist movement’s violent takeover of the Gaza Strip, Abbas appointed Salam Fayyad as prime minister, citing “national emergency.”

Fayyad’s government was never approved by the Palestinian legislature in accordance with the Basic law.

Anis al-Qassem, a constitutional lawyer who drafted the Basic law, was among many Palestinians who criticized the appointment of Fayyad as “illegal.”

Palestinian political analyst Hani al-Masri pointed out that the Doha Declaration that was signed on Monday between Abbas and Hamas leader Khaled Mashaal was in violation of the Egyptian-sponsored reconciliation agreement that was reached in Cairo in May 2011.

The Egyptian deal envisages the establishment of a government that is dominated by independent figures, Masri noted. “That’s why the announcement that President Abbas would head the unity government came as a surprise to many,” the analyst said.

Another political analyst, Khalil Shaheen, said the appointment of Abbas as prime minister meant that the Palestinians were “marching backward.” He added that the move was illegal and in violation of the [Egyptian-brokered] reconciliation pact between Hamas and Fatah.

A top Fatah official in Ramallah said there was “strong opposition” in his faction and the PLO to the Doha Declaration, mainly because of the intention to appoint the 76-year-old Abbas as prime minister.

“This is a scandal not only because it violates the [Palestinian] Basic Law, but also because it turns Abbas into an autocrat with absolute powers. This is unacceptable at a time when the Arab world is witnessing popular uprisings against dictators,” the official said.

Abbas already holds at least four titles: PA president, head of the PLO Executive Committee, chairman of the Fatah Central Committee and Overall Commander of the Palestinian Armed Forces.

Some Palestinians resorted to Facebook to voice their opposition to the appointment of Abbas as prime minister.

In a sarcastic comment, Palestinian activist Ruba al-Najjar wrote: “Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas congratulates the new prime minister, Mahmoud Abbas, and invites him to meet with the chairman of the Fatah Central Committee, Mahmoud Abbas, under the auspices of the head of the PLO Executive Committee, Mahmoud Abbas, at the home of the overall commander of the Palestinian Armed Forces, Mahmoud Abbas.”

Hamas media is noting this as well.

This Photoshop is going around of Abbas appointing himself Prime Minister, as the law states the President must do.

Arabs claim photos of a Jew urinating on Temple Mount

The Al Aqsa Heritage Foundation has another series of photos of Jews, and especially IDF soldiers, "storming" the Temple Mount.

Most of it is pretty typical stuff:

One photo, apparently taken inside one of the buildings, is clearly a different set of tourists but meant to make people think that the soldiers barged in:

The Muslims are accusing the Jews of performing "Talmudic rituals" as usual.

But there is a new twist here. They claim to have photos of a man from the group urinating on an outer wall of the compound:

I did not see this man in any of the other photos that would show that he was part of this group. (One man in the group dressed similarly but wore a kippah and glasses and carried a cane, so this wasn't him.)

Obviously, if someone did urinate there (and I cannot find a stain on the wall showing he did,) it would be an outrageous act of sacrilege both for Muslims and for Jews. Needless to say, no religious Jew would ever consider doing such a thing. Even pretending to do so is astonishingly bad taste and poor judgment.

Or, it could be a set-up, in order to enrage Muslims against Jews, something the Al Aqsa Foundation tries to do literally every day.

The annual festival of hate towards Israel, absurdly called "Israel Apartheid Week," is coming up. The schedule as I understand it is:

Europe February 20 – March 10
West Bank March 12-19
United States February 26 – March 3
Canada March 5-9
Arab World March 5-11
South Africa March 5-11

Yes, it is a month long "week." Because you just can't fit all that vitriol into a measly seven days.

So, just a reminder that you can get lots of posters here to use in your own communities for pro-Israel rallies and counterprotests.

And here is a spoof of this year's poster:

(h/t 5 Minutes for Israel)

Israelis broadcasting messages of peace to Iranians

From Israel HaYom/AP:

While Israeli leaders are increasingly sounding belligerent warnings of a potential military strike against Iran’s nuclear installations, a group of Iranian-Israelis are transmitting a different message.

Radio RADISIN, a private Persian-language station based in Tel Aviv, airs Iranian music, poetry and current affairs shows aiming to spread peace between the Israeli and Iranian people - regardless of who is in power in Tehran.

“We, the people in Israel, are a peaceful nation and not an enemy, or the ‘little Satan’ as we are described by the Iranian regime,” said Shay Amir, the station’s 42-year-old CEO, who left Iran for Israel after the 1979 Islamic revolution. “For 32 years, the regime has poisoned its people against Israel. We are here to tell the truth.”

RADISIN broadcasts 24 hours a day via the Internet, satellite and cable TV. It says 100,000 listeners tune in daily, including an undisclosed number from Iran, where Internet speeds are slow and many sites, including those of political opposition groups, are blocked.

It is not the only Israeli media directed toward Iran. Israel’s state-run radio station has been broadcasting in Persian for 50 years from a spartan studio off a narrow Jerusalem alleyway.

It also chats with Iranians via a switchboard in Germany to get around a ban on calls from Iran to the Jewish state. Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has even named the “Zionist broadcast” as among those behind civilian unrest in his country.

RADISIN relies mainly on anonymous sponsors and donations and it airs some commercials. It takes calls from Iranian listeners who often criticize the regime in Tehran and express affection for Israel.

For fear of exposing these callers - and having them branded as collaborators by the Iranian regime - the station asked The Associated Press not to record the conversations.

Others in Iran have been less enamored by the Israeli broadcast. “Twice from Iran, they hacked our website and caused damage, and because of this we decided to switch and air via satellite,” Amir said.

Hezbollah improbably claims not to take orders from Iran

From Reuters:

Lebanon’s Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah acknowledged on Tuesday for the first time that his armed movement received financial and material support from Iran, but denied it took instructions from the Islamic Republic.

Nasrallah said Hezbollah previously only confirmed Iranian political and moral backing because it did not want “to embarrass our brothers in Iran”, but had changed policy because Iran’s leadership had announced its support in public.

“Yes, we received moral, and political and material support in all possible forms from the Islamic Republic of Iran since 1982,” Nasrallah told supporters by videolink in a speech marking the anniversary of the birth of the Prophet Mohammed.

“In the past we used to tell half the story and stay silent on the other half ... When they asked us about the material and financial and military support we were silent.”

Nasrallah said Iran had not issued orders to Hezbollah since the movement was founded 30 years ago, adding that if Israel attacked Iran's nuclear sites, the leadership in Iran “would not ask anything of Hezbollah.”

He said if that were to happen, Hezbollah’s own leadership would “sit down, think and decide what to do.”

Sure.

Some vintage posters for Tu B'Shevat

Today is Tu B'Shevat, the Jewish New Year for trees.

Here are some vintage Zionist posters with the theme of fruit:

Hebrew Watermelons!

Sometimes, no one cares when Palestinian Arab homes are demolished

30 homes were destroyed in the territories yesterday - and there is no outcry.

The reason, of course, is that the homes were in Gaza City and it is Hamas doing the destruction.

Palestine Press Agency (seemingly now only on Facebook as a result of hackers) reports that Hamas bulldozers destroyed 30 homes and displaced dozens of families last night, because they built them on government land, sending the families into the cold without notice.

It will be interesting to see if Amnesty International or Human Rights Watch issue any reports about this.

Even more so, I look forward to seeing the condemnations from all those supposedly "pro-Palestinian" organizations who issue mountains of press releases on behalf of their beloved oppressed pets when they perceive any injustice against them.

Any injustice, that is, as long as they can blame Jews.