Elder Of Ziyon - Israel News

Thursday, November 22, 2012

How a Hamas website avoids denial of service attacks

During the past week, I noticed that the Hamas Al Qassam terror website added a feature to combat Distributed Denial of Service attacks (DDoS).

When going to the site, you see a five-second delay where the site is apparently checking to make sure that you are running a real browser and not a bot. Only after the check will it allow you to enter the site.

During those five seconds, we see the name of the anti-DDoS company that Hamas uses - CloudFlare.

It appears that CloudFlare is a US-based company.

Perhaps someone should see if this is legal. After all, Hamas is a US-designated terror organization, and the idea that a US company can help secure the Al Qassam Brigades seems to be not quite right.

And CloudFlare should answer why it decided to support a terror group.

The first fake PCHR "civilian"

As EoZ readers know, after Cast Lead I led a team that identified hundreds of people who were called "civilians" by the Palestinian Center of Human Rights - but were in fact terrorists.

We scoured through official jihadist websites and forums to see which of these "civilians" were called "mujahadeen." We crosschecked obituaries published on Hamas and other terror group websites, often months later, against the PCHR list.

In short, we showed that PCHR was happy to lie in order to make it appear that the IDFwas targeting civilians.

Looks like we have our work cut out for us again:

According to investigations conducted by PCHR, at approximately 17:45 on Tuesday, 20 November 2012, an Israeli warplane fired a missile at Hussam Mohammed Salama, 30, and Mahmoud Ali al-Koumi, 29, cameramen of the Gaza-based al-Aqsa Satellite Channel, while they were traveling in a civilian car clearly marked with ‘TV’.

Luckily, I just made a poster about Mr. Salama, along with a photo of the car where he had crudely spray-painted "TV."

As the IDF says:

A senior Hamas operative was targeted while driving a press vehicle. Muhammed Shamalah, commander of Hamas forces in the southern Strip and head of the Hamas militant training programs, was targeted by an Israeli air strike while driving a car clearly labelled “TV”, indicating it to be a press vehicle, abusing the protection afforded to journalists.

PCHR no doubt knows all of this, and they choose not to mention it. Even if they want to make the argument that Salama was not actively involved in combat - their normal argument when asked about the high number of terrorists that they call civilian - they show their dishonesty by not revealing the entire story, and instead saying as a fact:

These crimes are aimed to silence and the press and prevent journalists from reporting on crimes committed by Israeli forces against Palestinian civilians.

In other words, PCHR is not just withholding information - it is knowingly lying.

This is why so-called "human rights" organizations cannot be assumed to tell the entire story. They have an agenda just like everyone else does, and they will hide information that does not fit that agenda. PCHR is just one very sorry example of this.

Hamas' "victory" (Zvi)

From occasional EoZ contributor Zvi:

So let me get this straight. They're saying, "we won because we picked a fight with Israel and Israel has better things to do than flatten Gaza."

That's a victory?

The terrorists and their sympathizers:

* lost a large percentage of their most advanced and long-range weapons
* lost experienced senior terrorist commanders from Hamas and PIJ
* did no damage at all to Israel's ability to fight a war
* only squeaked a small percentage of rockets past Iron Dome
* only received "moral support" from Islamists, Arab regimes, communist hold-overs and the Russians, who mostly did it because they are trying desperately to distract attention away from Syria.
* failed even to stop Israeli shipments of food and fuel into Gaza through Kerem Shalom
* exposed their use of hospitals and press facilities as military command posts
* highlighted in front of the international media the extent to which Israelis are under fire, and the extraordinary efforts that Israelis have taken to protect civilians, in contrast to Hamas' attacks on civilians
* came whining to the Egyptians for help in stopping an escalation that they started themselves, basically forcing the Egyptian government to underwrite an agreement with Israel
* executed some "collaborators" in public and had a nice little motorcycle parade for the cameras, embarrassing the Hamas leadership
* put Khaled Meshaal back in charge (apparently)
* attempted to surpass Baghdad Bob by continually making ludicrous claims that were subsequently disproved.
And now
* killed some of their own supporters while celebrating a nonexistent victory.
* committed a wide plethora of war crimes, many of which (storing explosives in civilian buildings, for example) resulted in the deaths of their own people.

Yes, they killed a handful of Israelis, mostly civilians and one an Arab. Yes, they caused a lot of damage, hurt a lot of people and wasted a lot of time. As much as I mourn for the innocents killed by the Gaza terrorists, and wish their families peace and strength, it is important to point out that while their losses are horrible tragedies for us, they achieve nothing real for people in Gaza.

So what exactly is Hamas celebrating?

I guess when Gazan terrorists can't achieve anything real, they celebrate pretend victories.

PFLP-GC takes responsibility for Tel Aviv bus bombing (video)

From MEMRI:

Following is an excerpt from a TV program featuring PFLP-GC spokesman Anwar Raja, which aired on Al-Alam TV on November 21, 2012.

Anwar Raja: I’d like to say that this high-profile operation of detonating an explosive device on a [Tel Aviv] bus...

It was not placed in a bag that blew up, like the enemy claimed. It was detonated by remote control. We have the expertise and capabilities to carry out such things, and that is what we did.

The fedayeen who carried this out are from the heart of Palestine. The enemy can search where they came from. It will find no trace of them. They are the salt of the earth, from the heart of Palestine. They could be from the north, the south, or the West Bank... We don't want the enemy to direct its wrath toward a specific place, so we only say that they were from within Palestine.

The spirit of martyrdom that drives the fedayeen of the Jihad Jibril Brigades is the principle of martyrdom, the spirit of martyrdom...But if we are capable of striking the enemy without having to blow up our bodies – that is even better. This is what happened. Despite all its security measures, the enemy was unable to predict where we would strike. They have been unable to arrest anyone, and therefore, they are fumbling around.

This operation has sent a resounding message to Netanyahu and Barak: Gaza is not alone, and its war extends beyond the borders they want to set. This is the war of the resistance alliance, the battle of us all. This war extends from Tehran to Damascus, to Gaza, to South Lebanon, and to Hizbullah.

"Cease-fire" rockets still falling short in Gaza - and Lebanon!

From YNet:

Air raid sirens sounded shortly after 10 am on Thursday in the Eshkol Regional Council after a rocket appeared to have been fired towards the region from Gaza. Witnesses said that they saw the rocket exploding in a Palestinian territory. Security services said it was a false alarm.

The incident followed a relatively quiet night in Israel's south. The final Color Red alert sounded in the Shaar Hanegev Regional Council at 22:58, two hours after the ceasefire between Israel and the factions in Gaza went into effect.

The IDF said that of the 13 projectiles that were fired from Gaza after 9 pm on Wednesday, ten failed to reach Israel, exploding in Palestinian territories instead. The army said Hamas and the Islamic Jihad intended to hold fire and to enforce the truce among the smaller factions across the Strip.

Those last two sentences are somewhat contradictory; it seems to mean that the smaller factions are still firing rockets despite the "cease fire."

No word yet on where exactly the rockets fell short or anything about injuries or damage. But Gaza media never mentions that anyway.

It appears that the south isn't the only border where terrorists are trying to shoot rockets into Israel:

The Lebanese army disabled a rocket on Thursday which was primed to be fired into northern Israel and said two others were launched late on Wednesday but fell short of the border.

An army statement said the incidents all took place near the southern Lebanese town of Marjayoun, about five km from Israel's northern border.

On Monday the army dismantled two rockets aimed towards Israel, which bombed the Gaza Strip for eight days until a Wednesday evening truce.

Security sources said one of the 107 millimeter rockets fired on Wednesday fell about 500 meters inside Lebanese territory and the other landed right on the border. There were no reports of casualties.

Don't forget - groups in Egypt also are shooting rockets towards Israel as well.

Plus the occasional mortar coming over from Syria.

This is what "calm" looks like.

Gazan killed - by celebratory gunfire

From Reuters:

With gunshots, sweets and cries of victory, Palestinians in the Gaza Strip poured into the streets to celebrate a ceasefire deal on Wednesday which ended eight days of deadly fighting.

Firing a deafening burst from his Kalashnikov rifle, Mohammed al-Ghazaleh boasted: "(Israeli Prime Minister) Netanyahu will mourn tonight, while the people of Gaza are steadfast in their resistance and have triumphed."

They already have their first triumph.

Ma'an reports that one Gazan was killed and three more wounded by gunshots - fired during this very celebration.

For Gazans, happiness really is a warm gun.

(h/t Challah Hu Akbar)

Iron Dome is fantastic. But it doesn't solve anything.

The star of Operation Pillar of Defense - indeed, practically the source for the very name of the operation - was undoubtedly Iron Dome.

Iron Dome is purely defensive. It is remarkably effective. It is an impressive technological achievement. It probably saved scores of lives. And almost certainly it is going to bring a lot of countries to Israel's door to buy the system for their own needs.

President Obama said (possibly as a carrot to convince Netanyahu to accept a cease fire) that he would seek more money to help pay for more of the anti-missile systems to help enhance Israel's protection even more.

What's not to love?

Here's the problem:

You know how Western nations are eager to say that Israel has a right to defend itself? They have systems like Iron Dome in mind. It doesn't kill anyone, it seems to magically protect Israelis, and its name even evokes a protective shield. But when Israel actually take the offensive - bombing terrorists and their infrastructure, striking missile sites, destroying tunnels - people start to die, and that makes Israel's allies skittish. Can't those brilliant Israelis just come up with lots of Iron Dome-type solutions and stay happy? Why rock the boat?

The reason is that Iron Dome might save lives, but it does not stop terror.

Terrorism has two components, one tactical and one strategic. The tactical part of terrorism is attacking civilians and civilian targets. But the word "terrorism" is not named after the attacks themselves, but after the strategy: to instill terror in a large population so that they cannot live normal lives.

While Iron Dome managed to stop an amazing 84% of rockets it aimed at, did it allow people under fire to live anything resembling normal lives? Were schools and businesses open as usual? Did people ignore the alarms and laugh because they know they were protected?

Obviously not. Iron Dome could stop most of the rockets from killing people, but it did not stop the rockets from terrorizing people. Which means that, from Hamas' perspective, Iron Dome was unable to stop the entire strategy of terrorists: to terrorize millions of people.

You don't have to take my word for it. Hamas and Islamic Jihad media are filled with photos of Israelis running to shelters. They certainly celebrate deaths, but they celebrate the terror just as much. They revel in the fact that Israeli schools are closed or that thousands move north. Their currency is fear.

It is wonderful that so many lives were saved by Iron Dome, and the system is worth every penny. But that doesn't solve the real problem: that Israel has a murderous neighbor who can and does terrorize Israelis at will - and is willing to wait for centuries if needed to drive all the Jews out of the Middle East. Forcing them to cower in safe rooms at all hours of the day is a very good step towards that goal.

I don't know if there were any backroom deals for the US to convince Israel to drop plans for a ground war. I am not even certain that a ground war can solve the problem without a complete re-occupation of Gaza, something that most Israelis would consider delusional. (Those that think that more Israeli concessions will magically bring peace and goodwill from the Islamists are even more deluded.) A ground war could have added a layer of deterrence that could have kept things quiet for a while - in the case of Lebanon, it has been quiet now for six years. Maybe that is the best that can be hoped for until a better long-term strategy is developed.

Right now, there is little added deterrence and it will only take a year or so for Hamas' weapons arsenal to be replenished.

Celebrating Iron Dome as some sort of model for Israel's security is very shortsighted. It saves lives but it doesn't reduce terror very much at all. And unless somehow the cease-fire has some teeth in it that has not been made public, the entire operation didn't reduce terror for Israelis either.

Hamas war crimes poster (7)

Seventh in a series:

From the IDF blog:

When terrorists disguise themselves as civilians, it can only end badly for civilians. Today, a senior Hamas operative was targeted while driving a press vehicle, effectively disguising himself as a reporter. By doing so, he risked the lives of all journalists in the Gaza Strip.

Over the past several days, the IDF has carefully pinpointed and targeted sites used by terror groups in the Gaza Strip, most notably the Hamas and the Islamic Jihad. Terrorists complicate the task by systematically using civilian facilities and locations as a cover for their operations.

The “human shield” method, as it is commonly known, has forced the IDF to target seemingly non-military targets, resulting in some of the civilian casualties. It has also endangered all residents of the Gaza Strip who, without their consent, were unwittingly dragged into the conflict.

One such example came in today, when a senior Hamas operative was targeted while driving a press vehicle. Muhammed Shamalah, commander of Hamas forces in the southern Strip and head of the Hamas militant training programs, was targeted by an Israeli air strike while driving a car clearly labelled “TV”, indicating it to be a press vehicle, abusing the protection afforded to journalists.

Wednesday links

From Ian:

Col. Richard Kemp Former British Troops Commander on Possible Israel-Hamas Ceasefire: “I’m Skeptical” of How Long it Can Last

“There is a very effective anti-Israel propaganda machine and there has been for some time. It’s partly from the Palestinians, partly from other Arab states and many people in the West—from Europe in particular but also the United States—see Hamas as the underdog and Israel as the bully and their natural inclination is to side with the underdog; but it’s to misunderstand the reality: Hamas is not a small group of lone freedom fighters. Hamas is a terrorist organization supported, financed and directed by Iran. Israel on the other hand is not a bully. It has shown amazing restraint—far more restraint than most other countries would show in the face of this sort of provocation.”

Pillar of Defense: Seventh Day Recap VIDEO

Rockets kill soldier, Bedouin civilian in Eshkol region
Army posthumously promotes Yosef Fartuk to corporal

Fire from Syria strikes IDF vehicle in the Golan Heights
No injuries reported, but truck sustains minor damage; army files protest with the UN

Al-Qaeda linked terrorist group launches Multiple rockets into Israel from the Sinai VIDEO (broken)

"We Are David Up Against Islamic Fundamentalist Terror": Leonie's Letter From Israel

"We are not the Goliath in this story, we are David up against Islamic fundamentalist terror supported by Iran. Support Israel and you support the democratic and humanist values of the free world.
Support our enemies and you undermine those very values and play into the hands of those who despise freedom and love."

In Rishon and Ashkelon, ‘safe rooms’ save lives in two direct rocket strikes
Rocket with 90 kilos of explosives smashes through three floors of an apartment building in Israel’s fourth-largest town — and nobody is badly hurt Video

Iran official: Gaza fighters need to be 'equipped'

Nasrallah slams Arab countries for not arming Gazans

Egypt intercepts 108 warheads from Libya to Sinai and Gaza
Egyptian security officials say trucks carrying explosive warheads and a variety of small-arms ammunition smuggled from Libya were confiscated Pickup trucks were reportedly carrying some 108 warheads for Soviet-designed Grad rockets.

While fighting rages between Israel and Hamas, Hezbollah watches and waits
Analysts say domestic considerations and fallout from the Syrian civil war keep the Lebanon-based organization on the sidelines

Israel demands 15-year lull, Morsi guarantee
According to reports in Cairo, Israel put forward six key demands for ceasefire, threatened ground offensive in Gaza if no response within 48 to 72 hours

US blocks UN Security Council call for Gaza cease-fire as unbalanced against Israel
"The draft press statement failed to address the root cause of the current escalation — the continuing barrage of rocket attacks from Gaza against Israel," the spokeswoman for the U.S. Mission to the U.N., Erin Pelton, said in a statement.

Israel ‘outshouts’ Hamas TV, radio
In a little-heralded aspect of Pillar of Defense, the IDF hijacks the Gaza airwaves and sends its messages to residents

The ‘Kids’ Behind IDF’s Media
Young Israeli soldiers have pushed older commanders into adopting a more aggressive social media strategy

Melanie Phillips: Yet more (real) news
Here’s yet more information about the war between Hamas and Israel that unaccountably you may not have come across in today’s UK mainstream media. Today’s entries are all for the Hall of Shame, which is getting mighty crowded.

Beware of Beinart

"According to an insidious article he penned this week, Hamas is the victim of backwards-looking Western policy. Inverting cause and effect, Beinart asserts that Hamas is obstructionist and violent because it hasn't been fairly and properly "engaged." Poor Hamas, you see, has never been given an "incentive" to abide by a cease-fire."

Honest Reporting: Hamas Using Hospital As Cover for Rocket Launch

"Hamas officials at the hospital were asked how firing rockets from such a built-up area could be justified as it is likely to provoke Israeli action. One said Palestinians were merely defending themselves, another that it was probably the work of the Islamic Jihad militia."

IDFBlog: Senior Terrorist in Gaza Disguises Himself as Journalist
"When terrorists disguise themselves as civilians, it can only end badly for civilians. Today, a senior Hamas operative was targeted while driving a press vehicle, effectively disguising himself as a reporter. By doing so, he risked the lives of all journalists in the Gaza Strip." [poster coming up -EoZ]

CIF Watch: The Guardian’s Seumas Milne defends Palestinians’ right to kill Israelis

“So Gazans are an occupied people and have the right to resist, including by armed force (though not to target civilians), while Israel is an occupying power that has an obligation to withdraw – not a right to defend territories it controls or is colonising by dint of military power."

BBC Watch: BBC’s Kevin Connolly: Hamas missiles are “antiquated”
What Connolly ‘forgets’ to point out of course is that Hamas’ weapons are aimed exclusively at civilians.

CAMERA: Ten Things The Huffington Post Got Wrong About Gaza (Actually Thirteen, but Who’s Counting?)

HuffWatch: HuffPost enables torrent of anti-Semitic user comments in response to its incitement against Israel

Hamas moderates and Israel’s celebrities By Seth J. Frantzman
Another outcome of this round of fighting has been the need of the Israeli Left to find a reason to critique the operation.

Anti-Israel protesters frustrated, burning out
TORONTO – Anti-Israel agitators expressed frustration and hinted at burn-out at a protest across from the Israeli consulate last week.

MEMRI:
Child Preacher Ibrahim Adham Longs for Martyrdom, Fighting alongside the Palestinians VIDEO

Egyptian Hulk Hogan Wannabe Threatens: I Would Go and Fight Israel Right Now VIDEO

Landmark court decision opens way for claims against Palestinian Authority
Israeli man twice kidnapped and tortured by PA security forces wins the right to sue for damages; terror victims may follow suit

French Jews turn out en masse to show support for Israel
2,000 attend rally in Paris linking terrorism against Jews in both countries

Teens arrested after prayer books burned in French Jewish cemetery
Graffiti targeting Jews and pro-Palestinian activist appears in Paris and near Lyon

Gravestones destroyed at Polish Jewish cemetery
Jewish community head afraid some of the damage is irreparable

Poles thwart anti-Semite’s plot to blow up parliament, president and prime minister
Security agents arrest academic researcher accused of planning massive explosion in the heart of Warsaw

Israel Daily Picture: The Return of the Palace Hotel to Jerusalem

"Early in the construction, one of the Jewish contractors wrote in his memoirs, workers discovered buried human remains, apparently from an ancient section of the Mamilla Muslim cemetery across the road. Husseini (the Nazi, Mufti of Jerusalem) instructed the contractor to quickly and quietly rebury the bones lest his political rivals discover the desecration. But they did find out, and a nasty public relations and religious court battle ensued."

[More on that incident at EoZ here.]

From the quiet of Ethiopia to the explosions of the south
Stesyahu Alema and 90 other new immigrants head straight into the conflict zone upon arrival

"None of them would refuse an opportunity to move to Israel, he said. Many Ethiopians see Israel as a land of plenty and a way out of Africa’s desperate poverty. For many, aliyah is the realization of a lifelong dream.“Every beginning is hard, but the hardship gets canceled out because of the happiness,” Bahta said. “You realized the dream. What, they shouldn’t come? There’s nothing like that. This will change their lives.”

Also:
Have people gone mad?

Baby-killers vs. innocent baby-killers

Arab Columnists Criticize Firing Of Rockets From Gaza As Reckless Escapade Serving Iran, Not Palestinians (MEMRI)

Targeted Killings and Double Standards (JCPA, PDF file.)

And, by popular request, a classic EoZ video to tweet every time you hear someone call Gaza "the most densely populated place on Earth."

Text of ceasefire agreement (updated)

Challah Hu Akbar grabbed the text of the cease-fire agreement that is supposed to be going into effect right about now:

Understanding Regarding Ceasefire in Gaza Strip

1. a. Israel shall stop all hostilities on the Gaza Strip land, sea and air including incursions and targeting of individuals.

b. All Palestinian factions shall stop all hostilities from the Gaza Strip against Israel, including rocket attacks, and attacks along the border

c. Opening the crossings and facilitating the movement of people and transfer of goods, and refraining from restricting residents free movement, and targeting residents in border areas and procedures of implementation shall be dealt with after 24 hours from the start of the ceasefire.

d. Other matters as maybe requested shall be addressed.

2. Implementation Mechanism:

a. Setting up of the zero hour for the Ceasefire Understanding to enter into effect.

b. Egypt shall receive assurances from each party that the party commit to what was agreed upon.

c. Each party shall commit itself not to perform any acts that would breach this understanding. In case of any observations, Egypt – as the sponsor of this understanding – shall be informed to follow up.

Fairly generic as far as I can see. One immediate issue, though, is that it sounds like it is requiring Israel to no longer enforce the buffer zone - the 300-to-1000 meters that Israel requires to remain clear so that there won't be any attempted explosives along the fence or other attempts to infiltrate Israel.

I can see that being a problem, and possibly it will be interpreted differently by each side.

Not that I am optimistic that this will last the night anyway - there are enough nutty jihadist groups that will be happy to lob a few rockets to prove their manhood.

UPDATE: So far, 23 minutes after the "cease-fire" was to go into effect, there have been rockets towards Hof Ashkelon, Beer Sheva, Shaar HaNegav and Eshkol. It appears that this is the world's definition of a cease fire - only Israel can break one.

Jaabari's bodyguard's kids say they want to be martyred too

From MEMRI:

Following are excerpts from a TV report featuring the family of Hamas member Muhammad Al-Homs, who was killed alongside Ahmad Jaabari. The report aired on Al-Aqsa TV November 16, 2012.

Brother of Muhammad Al-Homs : Allah be praised, all the young Muslims in Gaza love martyrdom, just as our enemies, the infidel Jewish dogs, love life. We continue on the same path and pray to meet him in Paradise.

[...]
Mother of Al-Homs : This is the martyr's youngest boy. His name is Mash'al. He named him after the great leader Khaled Mash'al. Allah willing, little Mash'al will become like the big Mash'al. We are all moving forward for the sake of Allah.

Daughter of Al-Homs : I want to fire missiles at the Jews and be martyred like my father.

Mother of Al-Homs: We all hope to become martyrs for the sake of Allah. Even if they kill us all, we will continue to fire missiles. We will not stop the Jihad.

Son of Al-Homs : I am following the path of Jihad and want to be martyred like my dad.

I'm most proud of my "infidel Jewish dog" status when I see the alternative shown here.

Saudi man marries schoolgirl. And her teacher. And HER principal. And their supervisor!

Time to go off-topic...

From Al Arabiya:

Imagine a schoolgirl attending class, knowing that both her teacher and principal share the same husband. Awkward much?

Well, for a Saudi man who married the three women, it may just be an example of love conquering all.

The man, 50, was not named by the Saudi-based Okaz newspaper which reported the marital muddle.

But his attraction to all things academic does not end there. The man is also married to a fourth wife, who works as an educational supervisor, mostly supervising the school that her husband’s other wives attend and work at.

Meanwhile, the schoolteacher told the newspaper that the way she interacts with her husband’s wives at work is “no different” to how she treats other students and superiors.

Video: Hamas TV glee at possibility Israelis were killed

Hamas TV broadcast its delight at the news that civilians in Israel were targeted. (From IDF YouTube channel)

Hamas claims "spies" are turning themselves in, urges Gazans to ignore warning leaflets

Palestine Today reports that the Hamas interior minister announced that some Gazans have turned themselves in for being spies for Israel.

The minister, Islam Shahwan, said that they are being kept safe in exchange for their cooperation.

Six suspected spies were executed and their bodies mutilated yesterday by this same, thoughtful Hamas government.

Islamic Jihad reported on a vigilante lynching of a "collaborator" in Gaza City on Friday as well.

Shahwan also warned Gazans about Israeli intelligence using emails and phone calls to turn them into spies. He said that some will impersonate government officials.

Furthermore, Shahwan warned Gazans to ignore any Israeli leaflets that are dropped, warning them that bombs will be dropped in their area. He urged them to stay home instead.

The 1977 Additional Protocol to the Geneva Conventions requires that, if possible, civilians must be warned:

Effective advance warning shall be given of attacks which may affect the civilian population, unless circumstances do not permit.

But Hamas is telling citizens to ignore warnings meant to save their lives.

Is there any further proof needed that Hamas wants to see Gazan civilians killed?

Hamas knows that every dead baby - on both sides - is a victory. It is a shame that the media hasn't yet caught onto that simple fact.