Elder Of Ziyon - Israel News

Wednesday, November 14, 2012

Video of the airstrike that killed Hamas terrorist Jabari

Nice shooting!

Showing insecurity, Hamas threatens Gazans who spy for Israel

Even though Hamas and Islamic Jihad have been emphasizing in their media over the past couple of years about how terrible and dangerous it is to collaborate with Israel, the Ahmad Jabari assassination today shows that there are still plenty of Israeli human intelligence on the ground in Gaza.

And they are not happy.

Felesteen reports that Hamas' interior ministry promised to go after "spies and traitors." In a statement, they said "our security will hunt down and strike with an iron fist all who are tempted to tamper with internal security and we will pursue them everywhere, as confirmed by the vigilance of our security services to protect the home front and secure the back of the resistance and the service of the Palestinian people."

The ministry also had harsh words for Arab leaders and the international community who have not been publicly supporting Hamas' rocket barrages towards Israeli civilians.

Despite the harsh words, the impression given is that Hamas feels isolated in the world and insecure even among its own people.

Which is quite good news.

IDF takes out long-range rockets, operation "will continue and grow"

From the IDF blog:

The IDF has targeted a significant number of long range rockets sites (over 40 km) owned by Hamas. This deals a significant blow to the terror organizations underground rocket launching capabilities and munitions warehouses owned by Hamas and other terror organizations.

The aim of targeting these sites is to hamper their rocket launching weapons build up capabilities.

The Gaza strip, has turned it into a frontal base for Iran firing rockets and carrying out terrorist attacks against Israeli citizens.

The IDF will continue to target terrorist sites that are used to carry out terror attacks against Israeli citizens.

IDF website:

Brig. Gen. Mordechai added that "the Chief of Staff is in the [defended underground war room] and the Air Force continues its surgical strikes. We are in the midst of an attack that will continue and grow. There is no hourglass. We received the green light from the Prime Minister and the Minster of Defense. If I were a senior Hamas activist- I would look for a place to hide."

The IDF Spokesman did not rule out the possibility of a ground invasion and emphasized that all options that exist are on the table. "Infantry brigades have been shifted in preparation for the operation," said the IDF Spokesman. "All options that allow us to cause seriously damage to Hamas and the other terrorist organizations are on the table."

Top Hamas terrorist leader killed (updates)

From the IDF blog:

Jabari with Hamas honcho Zahar

In the past hour, the IDF targeted Ahmed Jabri, the head of Hamas’ military wing, in the Gaza Strip. Jabri was a senior Hamas operative who served in the upper echelon of the Hamas’ command and was directly responsible for executing terror attacks against the State of Israel in the past number of years.

The purpose of this operation was to severely impair the command and control chain of the Hamas leadership, as well as its terrorist infrastructure. This was a surgical operation in cooperation with the Israeli Security Agency, that was implemented on the basis of concrete intelligence and using advanced capabilities.

The headline is most interesting:

IDF Begins Widespread Campaign on Terror Sites in the Gaza Strip

Indicating that this is just the start.

UPDATES:

Car swarm:

And in a screenshot from Hamas TV, what appears to be plumes of smoke from multiple Israeli airstrikes:

The Mujahideen Shura Council announced on jihadist forums that it fired nine missiles towards Israel on Sunday, presumably from Gaza.

They called the operation "Drive Them Out," saying that they asked permission from Hamas to fire the rockets.

Their announcement bragged that they shot missiles towards "Jewish settlements" in the Negev.

If they are telling the truth, then this indicates that Hamas does cooperate with Sinai jihadist groups - implying at least indirect Hamas culpability towards the increasing number of attacks against Egyptian security forces in the Sinai. It also indicates that Sinai jihadist groups are freely operating in Gaza.

Meanwhile, at least one rocket was been fired from the Sinai towards the Israeli community of Bnei Netzarim in the past hour or two,according to AFP. No injuries or damage reported but the reaction from Egypt will be interesting.

(h/t Lachlan)

UPDATE: Jihadology counts that the MSC took credit for 38 rockets (h/t CHA).

UCI: where parents pay kids to learn lies

The "Associated Students of UCI" (University of California-Irvine) met last night and voted, 16-0, to divest from various companies that do business in Israel.

The targeted companies include Caterpillar (of course,) Cement Roadstones Holding, Cemex, General Electric, Hewlett-Packard, Raytheon, Sodastream and L-3 Communications.

The reasons given are the usual mix of flat-out lies and absurd exaggerations. The resolution says that Israel practices "apartheid", that it levels entire neighborhoods in refugee camps (I have yet to hear UNRWA mention that one,) and that it " ruthlessly level[ed] civilian dense regions" during Cast Lead.

Of course, ASUCI has nothing to say about the hundred of people likely to be murdered in Syria today, or about institutionalized discrimination against Palestinian Arabs in Lebanon to the extent that they cannot build houses or hold many jobs, or against Hamas celebrating the firing of deadly rockets at Israeli schoolchildren this week, or of the daily incitement in official Palestinian Arab media to destroy Israel completely.

No, they are far more concerned over Israel building a wall to stop suicide bombers.

Years of anti-Israel and anti-semitic [in the case of Sodastream] indoctrination pays off. UCI's professors and administration must be so proud.

The executive board of the student government has yet to approve this absurd measure that targets the right of self-determination of Jews. We'll see if they have any more sense or if they also get swept up in the pogrom-like mentality of viciously attacking anything to do with Israel.

(h/t Jennifer)

UPDATE: A little searching shows that UCI uses HP printers, multi-function copiers, desktop computers - and servers.

Have fun convincing the data centers to replace all their equipment, guys!

Major riots in Jordan over fuel prices

From AP:

Jordan’s prime minister announced price hikes for gas and other fuel Tuesday, setting off demonstrations and calls for general strikes.

Protesters blamed Jordan’s problems on King Abdullah II, who has the final say in all civic matters. They also demanded the resignation of the prime minister, a top aide of the king.

Prime Minister Abdullah Ensour’s announcement on state TV cited a need to offset $5 billion in state losses from a rising fuel bill.

The news sparked protests in the capital, Amman, and at least 12 other cities across Jordan.

“Revolution, revolution, it is a popular revolution,” chanted about 2,000 protesters in an impromptu demonstration at a main Amman square, housing the Interior Ministry and other vital government departments.

The protesters — affiliated with Muslim, Arab nationalist, Marxist, Communist and youth opposition groups — also targeted Abdullah in a rare public display against the monarch. Criticizing the king in public is forbidden in Jordan and is punishable by up to three years in jail.

Ammon News has the rundown:

* Protests erupt in various governorates throughout kingdom against government decision to lift subsidies on oil derivatives

** Two policemen critically injured in town of Taibeh, Irbid, after unknown assailant fired gunshots during protest

*** Gendarmerie forces use tear gas and rubber bullets to disperse rioters in Karak, Dhiban, and Salt

*** Protesters set gas station ablaze in Irbid

*** Protesters torch court building in Karak, Loot Civil Consumer Association market

*** Rioters set 3 police vehicles on fire in Tafileh, torch 6 govt vehicles in Salt

*** Looting of Central Market in Ma'an, Major Desert Highway blockaded

Wouldn't it be great if a friendly neighbor of Jordan's would offer to help out with its fuel crisis to head off these violent protests that threaten the regime?

Oh, right.

Collaborators!

From COGAT:

Civil Administration hosts meeting between Palestinian Authority and Israeli Ministry of Agriculture to discuss partnership in olive industry.

Dr. Adi Naali, the Olive Division Manager of the Israeli Plants Production and Marketing Board, recently met with representatives of the Palestinian Authority and Israeli Ministry of Agriculture to discuss future collaboration to increase olive oil sales from Israel and the West Bank.

Due to the recent frost and drought in Spain, the largest producer of olives in the market, olive oil prices are expected to soar as Spain is projected to lose an estimated 600,000 tons of product.

Dr. Naali stressed that now is the time to collaborate in order to advance protection against olive flies, improve technology for olive oil production and storage, and enhance advertising to take advantage of the current market situation.

In Israel, "collaboration" is a good thing.

To Arabs, "collaboration" can get you killed.

And so-called "peace activists" tend to side with the Arab definition.

Egypt: Veiled women cut hair of Copt on Metro, throw her off

From Bikya Masr:

A Christian woman reported that she had her hair cut off by two veiled women inside the Egypt’s capital city Cairo’s metro and thrown out of the car while being called an “infidel.”

Copts United, which reported the incident on its website, said the unnamed woman also suffered a broken arm from being thrown from the car.

The Coptic Christian advocacy group said this was the third such incident on the metro in the past 10 days and nearly at the same location.

Naguib Gebrael, the head of the Egyptian Federation for Human Rights, reportedly called the ministry of interior to “find a way to arrest those veiled women who belong to the Organization of the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice,” an underground movement that is not officially sanctioned or supported by the government.

Tuesday links

From Ian:

Top 10 Reasons Why the Media Is Biased Against Israel

"Within Israel there are far more journalists, both foreign and domestic, than in many larger countries and there are more foreign journalists in Israel than any other country in the region.No matter who the President or what is going on in the world, it seems Israel is always in the headlines. While there are many different reasons that the media is Anti-Israel, here is my list of the Top 10 Reasons Why the Media Is Biased against Israel:"

Operation Take Back the Media

"Our friends are listening. Our families are listening. And not to get too melodramatic on you, but, seriously, the world is listening.
So, I am asking you — hell, I’m begging you — please tell people what’s really happening in Israel. The sweet stories and the sad stories. The funny things and the scary things.The moments of quiet coexistence between people from all backgrounds and walks of life, and the days when rockets are hurtling through the skies.
Post a picture. Write a status message. Share an article.
Help create a new framework for a new discussion. Because speaking truth to power can change the world."

Explaining Gaza
Before a military operation in Gaza is launched – if it is launched at all – Israel should make an effort to explain itself to the international community.

"World opinion might be stacked against Israel, but we must not give up hope.
Those in the international community with a modicum of intellectual honesty will acknowledge that if the Palestinians living in Gaza were to abandon violence and reconcile themselves to Israel’s existence, then the conflict would end immediately."

UN secretary-general condemns Gazan rocket attacks
Ban Ki-moon also urges Israel to exercise caution with regard to stray fire coming from Syria

Hamas not considering ceasefire with Israel, spokesman says
Islamic movement files complaint against Israel at the UN for ‘crimes’ against Gaza

New app offers ‘Sderot experience’
13-year-old comes up with program that keeps track of missile fire on southern Israel

EU ban on Hezbollah may hinge on Burgas bombing
French ambassador tells 'Post': Blacklisting Hezbollah's military wing rests on outcome of Bulgaria suicide bombing inquiry.

Norway, Israel’s "best friend" is now working to take the EU junior championship from Israel

Campaign marking bombing of Jewish center wins Yahoo! Prize

‘Bread of Memory’ ads commemorate attack on Buenos Aires community building that killed 85
“Launched in July to mark the bombing, the campaign featured Food Factory chef Tomas Kalika sharing his bread recipe, which is said to contain ingredients that help improve memory. The “bread of memory” recipe and the names of the victims of the attack were distributed through social media, radio, TV, newspapers and magazines."

Questioned in court, head of UK academic union rejects anti-Semitism accusations
Facing a Jewish lecturer’s lawsuit, longtime Israel critic Sally Hunt denies members’ anti-Zionism crossed a line into racism

Neo-Nazis in Germany vandalize Holocaust memorials

‘Stumbling blocks’ project marks the homes of murdered Jews with name-bearing plaques
"According to the Die Welt newspaper, the brass plaques, which bear the names of murdered Jews and are placed outside their former homes as memorials, were pried loose."

Russian MP wants to buy Hitler’s first home — so he can destroy it
Frantz Klintsevich, a member of Vladimir Putin’s ruling party, has launched a campaign to raise $2.8 million to purchase the dictator’s Austrian birthplace

New Israeli technology for Woolworth checkouts
“Woolworths Limited, Australia’s leading retail group, has signed a five-year System Integration (SI) Services agreement with Israel’s Retalix.
Under the agreement, Retalix will provide Level 2 and Level 3 support for more than 3,000 Woolworths locations and 25,000 point-of-sale (POS) terminals, serving more than 24 million customers every week across Australia and New Zealand.”

Israel in the frame (I)
In September, StandWithUs brought to Israel 10 of the world’s top Instagram users to take inspiring, fun photos of daily life in the country. Here’s Part 1 of our “best of” series of selections.

Also:

Deprogramming students from the Palestine Solidarity Cult

Good news: Egyptian man jailed for 2 years for sexual harassment

Bad news: Women's equality article removed from Egypt's constitution

Violent Islamist plan discovered to "conquer Egypt"

From Al Arabiya, and inexplicably not too many other places:

Egyptian security has recently uncovered a document circulated among armed groups and which details a plan to “conquer” Egypt and restore the Islamic caliphate.

The document, entitled the “Conquest of Egypt,” was handwritten by a militant called Karim Ahmed Bedeiwi, who was killed in a recent police raid on a flat in the district of Nasr City in eastern Cairo.

The flat was reportedly was used as a weapons warehouse and the headquarters of a terrorist cell, security sources were quoted as saying by the online version of the Egyptian newspaper al-Wafd.

This document, the sources added, was distributed among 22 jihadist cells that operate under an umbrella group, which later came to be known as the Nasr City cell, and together form an intricate terrorist network that connects Cairo to other Egyptian governorates.

The “Conquest of Egypt” offers a detailed account of a plan by militant Islamists to seize power in Egypt and establish an Islamic caliphate.

The document mentions a series of steps that need to be taken to achieve their goal to “conquer,” they include assassinating the president, the Coptic pope, and several political and security figures.

This plan would coincide with a series of simultaneous bombings in several vital establishments as well as the Suez Canal, while main roads between Cairo and other Egyptian governorates and communication networks are to be taken over by the militants.

The plan also revealed that in addition to the Pope, the militants were going to target the Coptic community in general whether by assassinating and abducting prominent Coptic figures or carrying out terrorist operations in areas densely populated by Copts or known as their favorite gathering places.

The purpose, the document said, was to ignite a sectarian strife that not only rids the country of its Christian minority, but one that also undermines the structure of the Egyptian society.

According to security sources, the main purpose of the bombings is terrorizing the people so that they would not take to the streets in protest.

Certain strategic cities like Cairo, Alexandria, Suez, Port Said, and Ismailia, according to the document, were to be turned into military barracks.

The 22 cells, sources explained, possessed large numbers of advanced weapons and bombs that were brought from the Sinai Peninsula and Libya.

So there is a detailed plan. There is an organization. There are advanced weapons.

Where is the coverage?

Dozens of kids from southern Israel attended a meeting held by Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu with dozens of foreign diplomats in Ashkelon, as they told the diplomats what it was really like to grow up with thousands of rockets being fired at them any time of day or night. Speaking at the event was Netanyahu himself, as well as a student in a Negev university, who talked about the nuances of living under the threat of terror on a minute by minute basis.

“Every sound we hear might be a bomb or an alarm,” the student, Paz Azran, told the diplomats. “When there is an alarm, the only thing we can think about is getting to a shelter. I have to think twice before taking a shower, or even walking down the street. Where you see a building, I see a bomb shelter,” one that she might have to take refuge in at any moment, Azran said.

“Living like this is very hard for anyone of any age, especially students,” said the 17 year old, pointing out how difficult it was to concentrate on studies, or anything else. “We live like this every day, knowing that any second a rocket could hit us.” Azran said that the Iron Dome system, which has the ability to shoot rockets out of the sky, helps somewhat – but many rockets get past it anyway, striking targets anytime day or night, Azran told the diplomats.

UNRWA's refusal to properly help the Palestinian Arabs

Recently, the Commissioner General of UNRWA Filippo Grandi gave an impassioned speech to a UN subcommittee about the plight of Palestinian Arab "refugees" and how important UNRWA is and how it needs more money.

Buried within the speech, Grandi grudgingly admits that Arab nations discriminate against Syrian refugees of Palestinian origin. Notice how he is reluctant both to explicitly describe what the Arab countries are doing and to actually criticize the Arab nations for effectively throwing Palestinian brethren under the bus:

Under the Regional Response Plan, UNRWA is also asking for US$ 10 million to assist Palestine refugees from Syria fleeing to Jordan and Lebanon – currently numbering 1600 and 8000, respectively. Their situation - difficult, like that of other refugees fleeing Syria - adds to the tensions and complexities created by the pre-existing presence of large Palestine refugee communities in those countries. In spite of the relatively small number of Palestine refugees that have left Syria, their plight sadly confirms our view that - no matter how long they have lived in host countries and how hospitably they have been treated - they remain extremely vulnerable and exposed to the shocks of crises, given the centrality and sensitivity of the Palestinian question in the regional context.

We fully appreciate that countries neighbouring Syria have assumed once again a large burden in receiving - with limited international assistance - a huge influx of Syrian refugees. I would like to stress that Palestine refugees leaving Syria for temporary protection are fleeing the same grave risks and dangers as other refugees. Unfortunately, UNRWA has received information of a number of Palestinians being denied that protection. I would like to appeal once more to neighbouring countries to apply humanitarian criteria in considering these cases, not to distinguish between different categories of refugees, and to avoid any refoulement and deportation until the conflict in Syria has been resolved.

What he is saying is that Jordan and Lebanon, while accepting most Syrian refugees, are often sending Palestinian Arabs back to Syria to face an uncertain future or death. What he doesn't say is that many more would undoubtedly be fleeing if they knew that they would be protected - but Jordan and Lebanon aren't protecting them. (Chances are that Iraq isn't either.)

But Grandi doesn't say this explicitly. He uses the most passive voice possible so as not to antagonize the Arab nations who have been screwing the people he is sworn to protect.

Isn't it time to try a different angle?

Specifically, UNRWA needs to go back to its original mandate of integrating Palestinian Arabs into their host countries.

I just looked a little further at a document (referred to here) written by Lance Bartholomeusz, Chief, International Law Division, Department of Legal Affairs at UNRWA for UNRWA's 60th anniversary in 2010. It is really amazing, because it admits that UNRWA did have a mandate to resettle refugees - and somehow gave it up.

Here is what he wrote about that mandate:

More formally, the Agency has a mandate to consult with relevant governments about transitional arrangements in case of a durable solution. This part of the mandate is derived from a broader mandate existing since the Agency’s establishment:

To consult with the interested Near Eastern Governments concerning measures to be taken by them preparatory to the time when international assistance for relief and works projects is no longer available.[83]
UNRWA nevertheless does not have a mandate as such to seek durable solutions for Palestine refugees, although in its early years it had a mandate to engage in activities that promoted the integration of refugees into their host country.[84]

Footnote 84:

As to UNRWA’s mandate to engage in activities to promote reintegration, see UNGA res. 393 (V) of 2 Dec. 1950 where the General Assembly “Instruct[ed] the Agency to establish a reintegration fund which shall be utilized for projects requested by any government in the Near East and approved by the Agency for the permanent re-establishment of refugees and their removal from relief” (para. 5) after "Consider[ing] that, without prejudice to the provisions of paragraph 11 of General Assembly resolution 194 (III) of 11 December 1948, the reintegration of the refugees into the economic life of the Near East, either by repatriation or resettlement, is essential in preparation for the time when international assistance is no longer available, and for the realization of conditions of peace and stability in the area” (para. 4). This part of the mandate probably ended by 1960 when reference to “reintegration” was dropped from General Assembly resolutions relating to UNRWA, reflecting some acknowledgment that this objective had been defeated: see W. Dale, “UNRWA – A Subsidiary Organ of the UN”, op. cit., 584–5.

In other words, UNRWA's mandate never formally changed, but the UN stopped referring to it - hence a bizarre idea that it "probably" changed.

Even that formulation by Lance Bartholomeusz that UNRWA's mandate changed in 1960 is belied by the language of subsequent UNGA resolutions on UNRWA - as late as 1992:

The General Assembly...Notes with deep regret that ... no substantial progress has been made in the programme endorsed in paragraph 2 of resolution 513 (VI) for the reintegration of refugees either by repatriation or resettlement and that, therefore, the situation of the refugees continues to be a matter of serious concern...

It doesn't make sense to note this "with deep regret" unless resettlement is an actual stated goal of the UN, and UNRWA is the only agency that was ever tasked to do that.

It does not appear that UNRWA's mandate was ever formally changed away from resettlement. UNRWA just gave up. (And someone at the UNGA silently removed the language that was associated with the annual UNRWA resolution for every year in 1993, but no one noticed that the UN did that. Even so, the annual UN resolution is not the basis for UNRWA's mandate.)

Moreover, if Bartholomeusz's contention that the mandate changed because Arab nations "defeated" it by refusing to integrate Palestinian Arabs into their midst after a mere ten years, then why can't Israel's refusal to accept the "return" of millions of descendants of these refugees for over sixty years end the UN's insistence of "return"? Apparently, intransigence by Arabs can change a UN agency mandate, but not Israel's insistence not to be destroyed by a fictional "right to return."

An intriguing note in UNRWA's 1973 annual report also notes that the mandate of UNWRA is pretty much whatever UNRWA says it is in the absence of UNGA guidance:

It is against this background of General Assembly resolutions that UNRWA must carry out its mandate, with little specific guidance from the resolutions conferring that mandate, which, in effect, has come to consist of maintaining, to the extent UNRWA's resources permit, the programmes it has gradually developed over the years.

So UNRWA even admits that it makes things up as it goes along. But the corollary is that it is UNRWA that gave up on resettlement and then blamed the UN, not the UN itself instructing UNRWA.

In the end, UNRWA is not serving the international community nor is it doing what is best for Palestinian Arabs. Indeed, UNRWA has no provision for "refugees" to lose that status - even if they become citizens elsewhere.

Despite Grandi's supposed passion, he isn't willing to stick his neck out to shame Arab nations into doing what they do with every other Arab refugee. he is not willing to explicitly condemn Arabs for their role in perpetuating the misery of Palestinian Arabs. And he is not willing to work towards a lasting solution to the problem.

(h/t Challah for research help)

Latest "shahid" shows that Israel didn't target civilians on Saturday

On Saturday evening, after Gaza militants shot an anti-tank weapon at an Israeli jeep well within Israeli territory, Israel responded by shelling the area that the attack came from, in the Sajaiya neighborhood.

Four civilians were killed, and it looked from the outside like the IDF might have made a mistake. The PCHR even says that two of the dead were children "playing football."

But now it looks like there was no mistake.

Hamas, which claimed credit for the attack (along with other groups,) announced today the death of "mujahid" Mohammed Ziad, a member of the Al Qassam Martyrs Brigades.

Ziad died of injuries from the same Israeli retaliatory strike Saturday night against those who shot the anti-tank weapon.

While it is still sad that innocents were killed, now it seems that the "football playground" that was hit was actually the true source of the attack, just as Israel claimed, and the children playing there were human shields for Hamas.

Once again, Mahmoud Abbas is stating, explicitly but in Arabic, that the drive for upgrading the status of "Palestine" at the UN from "non-member entity" to "non-member state" is really to pretend that the so-called "1967 borders" are legally "Palestinian" - even though the General Assembly does not have the right to establish borders.

Here are his words to an Arab League meeting:

We want to prove our territory is Palestinian and was occupied in 1967, including Jerusalem, because Israel has another concept, and says that the occupied Palestinian territories in '67 territories are in dispute or contested in the sense that they are subject to negotiations...We want the world to understand that the Palestinian territories occupied in 1967 are occupied territory of a State, or a State under occupation...

Not a word about independence, or freedom, or statehood - the entire point of the stunt is to give the appearance of establishing borders, and afterwards Abbas can say that those borders are not negotiable because the UN has accepted them.

When he says he is willing to negotiate afterwards with Israel, he is saying that the idea of borders are off the table, including Jerusalem. The draft resolution's mention of "delineation of borders to be determined in final status negotiations" is meant to say that only minor border adjustments would be allowed but purely as his own choice - he would be voluntarily ceding some land to gain other land, but the land is inherently "Palestine" to begin with, and not disputed at all.

All he will negotiate is about prisoners and water and the other outstanding issues.

His "negotiation" on the day after would not be Oslo negotiations; they would be a new set of negotiations between two states, in his formulation.

The West seems clueless as to his plan to avoid negotiating the major issue that the Oslo process was meant to address, and indeed to abrogate the Oslo process altogether.