Elder Of Ziyon - Israel News

Sunday, January 06, 2013

Sunday Morning Links

From Ian:

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‘Illegal Settlement’ Approved as Legitimate, Thanks to the Left

A lawsuit against the “unauthorized settlement” Rachelim has led to it becoming a legal Israeli town. "Deputy council head Yossi Dagan chose to send a tongue-in-cheek “thank you” to Yesh Din for its lawsuit. “In the name of Rachelim, I am grateful to the extreme-left group Yesh Din for its contrarian lawsuit, which caused the Israeli government to come to a decision, to grab the bull by the horns and right a wrong that had lasted for years,” he said. “They came to curse,” he added, “but in the end, as in the [Biblical] story of Bilaam, they gave a blessing.”

IDF: 200 Palestinians attack Esh Kodesh vineyards

Palestinians cut through vineyard fence; 12 outpost residents were injured in the incident, one of which was taken to hospital. “Some 200 Palestinians attacked the vineyards of the West Bank Esh Kodesh outpost on Saturday afternoon, according to the IDF. Esh Kodesh spokesman Aron Katsof said 12 outpost residents were injured as a result, including one who was treated in the hospital and then released.”

UN Watch: UNESCO booklet still lists Assad’s Syria as human rights judge

"It’s high time for UNESCO to stop legitimizing a government that mercilessly murders its own people. UNESCO is allowing the Assad regime to strut in Paris as a U.N. human rights arbiter, an indefensible insult to Syria’s victims."

U.S. Concerned by Assad's Use of Iranian-Made Missiles

The United States is becoming increasingly worried about Syria’s use of ballistic missiles supplied by Iran.

Anti-Semitic rhetoric increasing in Tunisia under MB

Analysis: Muslim clerics believe regime will let them intensify their incitement against Jews. "The process of exile which had started in the early ’50s accelerated. There were more than 100,000 Jews living in Tunisia in 1948. Today there are an estimated 2,000 left, many of them living on the island of Jerba."

ADL slams German 'Spiegel' author for anti-Semitism

Exclusive: Anti-Defamation League tells 'Post': Augstein's statement "crosses the line into anti-Semitic conspiracy thinking." "The Simon Wiesenthal Center included Augstein in its list of 2012’s top-ten anti-Semites. Jacobson cited the following Augstein quote, which appeared in his column, as being contaminated with conspiratorial anti-Semitism: “With backing from the US, where the president must secure the support of Jewish lobby groups, and in Germany, where coping with history, in the meantime, has a military component, the [Binyamin] Netanyahu government keeps the world on a leash with an ever-swelling war chant.”

National Society of Film Critics awards top honors to Israeli documentary ‘The Gatekeepers’

Film featuring interviews with former heads of Israel’s covert Shin Bet security agency already shortlisted for Academy Award

Professor Nayef Jarrous appointed Advisor for Minority Affairs to Hebrew University President

Will lead university efforts to increase minorities’ access to higher education

Israel bans cosmetics tested on animals

Import, marketing of cosmetics, detergents tested on animals officially barred by law. MK Cabel: This is a revolutionary step in animal welfare

Queen honors Israeli professor

Oranim teacher Penny Ur will receive the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire for her contribution to promoting English language-teaching methodologies. "Prof. Penny Ur may live relatively anonymously in a small community in the North of Israel but even Queen Elizabeth II knows about her. Buckingham Palace announced over the weekend that the English teacher from Moshav Amnon will be honored with the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire for her outstanding work in teaching English and for promoting collaboration between Israel and Britain."

Caption Contest - Ali Khamenei

Guest post by Challah Hu Akbar, aka CHA or Challah

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CHALLAH @ Fars News

If your caption is good enough, I will add it to the post. Either send me an email, leave a comment or a tweet.

Here are a couple starters.

@challahhuakbar "Ahmadinejad did the gay shtick again?!"
— Michael Ross (@mrossletters) January 6, 2013

@challahhuakbar "Oy that cholent is giving me gas!"
— Michael Ross (@mrossletters) January 6, 2013

UPDATE: Here are a few good ones that I have seen in the comments.

"My grandmother was a Jew? Oiy." – Relpo Miraculous

“Damn these new glasses, Assad is as incompetent at optometry as he is being a dictator.” - Ian

“"GET OUT OF MY HEAD YOU ZIONIST THING" – RK

“Dammit, I forgot to call on Nasrallah's birthday" - SerJew

Saturday Night Links

From Ian:

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LATMA: 'A Day will Come', and terrorists in the Knesset have their day in court

Pat Condell: Patronising the Palestinians VIDEO

European settlements and double standards by Dore Gold (h/t EoL)

Is there any basis for comparing Northern Cyprus to the situation with the West Bank? "A number of glaring differences stand out. First, Israel entered the West Bank in a war of self-defense in 1967 when it faced an Arab war coalition that was massing forces along its borders. In contrast, the circumstances of the Turkish invasion were very different. Turkey did not face imminent attack from Cyprus, but rather was concerned with intercommunal tensions in Cyprus. Second, there was no established sovereignty in the West Bank in 1967 that Israel violated; there was no Palestinian state while Jordan's claim to sovereignty was rejected by most of the international community except for Britain and Pakistan. Moreover, there were earlier Jewish rights under the British Mandate, which never expired. Looking at the Cypriot case, prior to the Turkish invasion in 1974, the Republic of Cyprus was the undisputed sovereign over the entire island, including the area of Northern Cyprus."

Setting things straight

'The UN upgrade resolution has neither created a Palestinian state nor granted any kind of statehood to the Palestinians "Thus, any references in all of the many UN resolutions to “occupied Palestinian territories” are nothing more than an irresponsible prejudgment of an issue that has been agreed between the Palestinians and Israel to be settled in negotiations between the two nations. It is indicative of nothing more than wishful thinking on the part of those states voting in favor of it. Such resolutions have not determined and cannot determine the sovereignty of the areas in question or the state or authority to which such areas belong."

Netanyahu to Ambassadors: Palestinians Must Declare Conflict Over for Peace Accord

“Hamas could take over the Palestinian Authority any day, which is why we need solidified defense agreements and a diplomatic accord that ensures the recognition of Israel as the state of the Jewish people, and a [Palestinian] declaration of the end of the conflict,” Netanyahu said Jan. 3.

Discarding history

The Temple Mount is not in our hands. The Muslim wakf continues to damage antiquities and archeological artifacts as authorities remain helpless to prevent it. Entire Jewish, Muslim and Christian histories are being brutally dumped in garbage sites.

‘Our mission is to save Jerusalem,’ Abbas tells Fatah supporters in TV address to huge Gaza rally

100,000 join anniversary celebration in Hamas-controlled Strip, signaling growing detente between Palestinian rivals

Israeli Priest Hounded for His Support of Israel

"Father Nadaf believes Israel serves as an anchor for its Christian minority and cares for its security, and from this he derives his commitment towards Israel. Since his excommunication from the Council, which is headed by Dr. Azmi Hakim, a member of the Israeli Communist party, he has been forced to move around with bodyguards."

CAMERA: 13 for '13: New Year's Resolutions We'd Like the Media to Make

"Every January, people around the world take stock of themselves and resolve to improve in the new year, vowing to break bad habits and form good ones. In 2013, CAMERA would like news media to do the same and we suggest the following 13 for '13..."

Egypt's Islamic Jihad: Jews Deserve to be Killed

The Islamic Jihad terrorist group vows to fight Jews if they return to Egypt in the wake of remarks by Muslim Brotherhood official. "The Islamic Jihad terrorist group has vowed to fight Jews if they return to Egypt, saying they deserve to be killed, the Egyptian daily Al-Masry Al-Youm reported Thursday."

Leading Chinese firms eye Israeli technology investments

Bilateral trade between China and Israel totalled $8 billion (5 billion pounds) in 2011, according to Israel's Foreign Ministry. "Chinese have invested $3 billion in Israeli companies to date. The biggest investment was the $1.4 billion acquisition of 60 percent of MA Industries, the world's largest maker of generic crop protection chemicals, by China National Chemical Corp (ChemChina) in late 2011."

Sergeant in Saudi Air Force Faces Child Rape Charges in Vegas

Guest post by Challah Hu Akbar, aka CHA or Challah

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CHALLAH @ The Associated Press

A sergeant in Saudi Arabia's air force was jailed in Las Vegas on charges that he pulled a young boy into a hotel room and sexually assaulted him the morning of Sin City's big New Year's Eve fireworks extravaganza. Mazen Alotaibi, 23, faces charges including kidnapping, sexual assault with a minor and felony coercion that could get him decades in state prison, according to police and charging documents obtained Friday.

Mazen Alotaibi

The boy, who is younger than 14, told police the man forced him into a room at the Circus Circus hotel on the Las Vegas Strip and raped him. Police arrested Alotaibi after being called to the hotel before 9:30 a.m. on Dec. 31. "There was a kidnapping and sexual assault with force," Las Vegas police Lt. Dan McGrath said. "The victim said he was forced into the room and sexually assaulted. We have a strong case based on the evidence."

…McGrath said Alotaibi produced a Saudi Arabian military identification and said he was stationed at Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland near San Antonio, Texas. U.S. federal authorities and Saudi military officials were notified, the police lieutenant said.

Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland spokesman Brent Boller told The Associated Press that records showed Alotaibi is currently stationed at Keesler Air Force Base in Biloxi, Mississippi. Boller said he could not immediately verify if Alotaibi had been at Lackland, but noted that international military students attend a Defense Language Institute English Language Center on the base to improve their English-language skills.

Alotaibi's lawyer, Don Chairez of Newport Beach, California, said Friday he had been in contact with U.S. military authorities at both air force bases and with the Saudi government. He said Alotaibi had come to Las Vegas for the New Year's celebration, and will plead not guilty.

IDF Destroys Hundreds of Weapons, Some Pre-48, Found in Dead Sea Area

Guest post by Challah Hu Akbar, aka Challah & CHA

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CHALLAH @ IDF

Hundreds of weapons, some of them predating Israeli independence, were discovered last week in the area of the Dead Sea. The weapons – including mortars, explosives, M1 rifles and Sten guns – were detonated in controlled explosions by forces of the IDF Central Command, so as to prevent hostile forces from making new weapons out of their parts.

Head of the Central Command's Protection Desk Maj. Shahar Keller, who oversaw the IDF's handling of the discovered weapons, noted that this was only the third time in recent years that the IDF has carried out this type of activity. He explained that the weapons were uncovered against the backdrop of shifts in the area, such as the shrinking of the Dead Sea and changes in the terrain. He also noted that the site where the weapons were found is considered a minefield and is closed to the general public.

"We found many items at the site, including mortars, artillery, grenades, explosives, mines, and even radio transmitters, compasses, and different weapons," Maj. Keller said. "Our course of action is to detonate the weapons so that people's lives will not be endangered."

The hypothesis, Maj. Keller explained, is that these weapons are from various periods. A package of bombs was found at the site with a label indicating that it had been produced in November 1960, and it appears that a Jordanian force discarded it into the water during the Six Day War. Other discoveries show that weapons of the British Army from the period of the British Mandate were also discarded in the area. Also found in the area were additional weapons from various groups and armies, such as M1 rifles and Sten guns, which were used during the Second World War.

“We cleaned the surface of all visible items, and we are planning another detonation for the coming year,” Maj. Keller stated. “There is a significant challenge here. In contrast to the clearing of minefields – where there are organized lists of how many mines because we were the ones that put them there – with clearing of this kind there is no way to know the number of weapons. We depend on the forces of nature, and according to that, increase the frequency of the cleaning."

Maj. Keller noted that this is the only site in Israel in which weaponry and munitions have been uncovered many years after having been discarded. “The munitions are not in a dangerous location, so the goal is to avoid letting them get into hostile hands,” he added. “In the past, items have been stolen from the area and taken for the creation of explosive material, and [we aim] also to avoid a situation in which innocent tourists come across weaponry, even with the likelihood that the munitions will barely function due to long exposure to salt."

The controlled explosion was carried out by a reserve company of graduates of the Yahalom unit, which specializes in bomb disposal. An officer in the Israeli Navy said that the Underwater Missions Unit also takes part in the destruction of weaponry and munitions found in Israel's waters and that they perform operations in the Dead Sea every few years.

Israel’s Red-Light Washing

Guest post by Challah Hu Akbar, aka Challah & CHA

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CHALLAH @ The New York Times

For 20 years Aviva, 48, flamboyant and transgendered, worked the streets of the business district of this Mediterranean city, as well as the seedy square mile around the central bus station and the Tel Baruch beach, once a notorious hub of Israeli prostitution that has become a spruced up stretch of sandy coast.

Alona, 40, immigrated to Israel with her parents from Ukraine in the early 1990s. Her circumstances quickly degenerated from working in a casino to a life derailed by debts, drugs and prostitution. When she was not in prison, the squalid streets around the bus station became her home.

“In the streets there was no toilet, no toilet paper,” Alona said. “I forgot a lot of things, like how to look after myself, to love myself. I learned to survive.”

Now, in an endeavor as far removed from their former lives as the gleaming banks and trendy boutiques of Tel Aviv are from the city’s sleazy subculture, the two, who asked to be identified only by their first names, recently completed a free course in styling and the retail clothing business. Along with other former prostitutes who have received similar training in dress design and sewing, they are now aiming to find a place in the world of fashion. There is always demand for sales staff in Tel Aviv’s bustling stores, and one talented graduate even went on to a professional design school on a scholarship.

“The course gave me a lot of self-confidence and knowledge,” Aviva said. “Maybe one day I’ll be able to start something of my own. When they gave me the certificate — the first in my life — I was proud of myself. I’d done something positive.”

The idea for the program grew up from the underside of Tel Aviv.

Read the whole thing.

Friday Morning Links

From Ian:

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Barry Rubin: The Ultimate `Settlements are not the Problem’ Article

It must be a new year. The Washington Post has an editorial explaining that Israeli settlements are not the main problem in the Middle East. The Post editorial is amazing since such sanity is so rare. It begins: “Two mistaken but widely held notions regarding Israeli-Palestinian peace are that the settlements are the principal obstacle to a deal and that further construction will make a Palestinian state impossible.”

Douglas Murray: European Court of Justice "Lacking Any Foundation in Law"

"The European Commission in recent years has been funding rabidly anti-Israel and anti-Semitic campaign groups. Parading under the banner-term of "NGOs," they have one concerted aim, which is to manipulate international opinion against Israel: Foreign government-funded subversion of a democracy."

Al-Jazeera's "Alternative Viewpoint" in Qatar's Paradise

"Recently Al-Jazeera seems to have decided to topple the Palestinian Authority [PA], and transfer to Hamas -- Al-Qaeda's ideological and practical brother-in-arms -- the international recognition that the PA received from the UN in September, and to make Hamas sovereign in the West Bank as well as the Gaza Strip. To that end, it airs biased programs that are disproportionately favorable toward Hamas, and covers Hamas's "achievements," such as its "heroism" in firing rockets at Israeli civilians. The PA at least claims it wants to reach an agreement with Israel. Hamas, which uses its citizens, schools and hospitals as human shields during warfare it provokes, publicly proclaims day and night its intention to wipe Israel off the map."

Palestinian internal clashes erupt in Nablus

Government’s decision to only forgive debt for refugees angers citizens "Ramallah: Heavy clashes have erupted between the Palestinian public and their security apparatus in Nablus and the northern areas of the West Bank in protests against the Palestinian government’s decision to delete electricity debts and to financially pardon the residents of the refugee camps."

PMW: Abbas inaugurates housing project for families of terrorist prisoners

"He said that the birth of the housing project is an example and model that should be emulated in all the districts, since it represents cooperation, solidarity, and collective responsibility for confronting the challenges posed to the Palestinian nation. [He noted] that this project demonstrates loyalty to and love for the prisoners, and that they are not alone, for everyone looks forward to their return so that they may live in their homes with their families."

Honest Reporting: Most Popular Content 2012

Egyptian forces capture American-made missiles headed for Gaza Strip

Anti-tank, anti-aircraft and other rockets discovered in secret depot south of el-Arish in Sinai

IDF Blog: 2012: Biggest IDF Events

"The year of 2012 was packed full with events and security issues. Some challenged us, like Operation ‘Pillar of Defense’, and some were devastating, such as the attack in Bulgaria which killed six Israelis. During this year, over 1,400 rockets launched from the Gaza Strip hit Israel. So here are the biggest events for the IDF in 2012"

Apple reportedly looking to buy Israeli map app Waze

iPhone maker may see local startup as solution to mapping woes; company wants $750 million, but Apple offering $400-$500 million, according to reports "Apple is rumored to be looking into buying the Israeli satellite navigation application Waze, which has become a worldwide hit thanks to its melding of crowd sourcing and traffic mapping."

Mahmoud Abbas is a Libertarian?

Guest post by Challah Hu Akbar, aka Challah & CHA

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According to Mahmoud Abbas' Facebook page, his political views are "Libertarian." Who knew?

When Was Hamas First Mentioned in the Media by Name?

Guest post by Challah Hu Akbar, aka Challah & CHA

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This evening in Kill Khalid, I read that Hamas’ first signed statement was issued on December 14, 1987. Interestingly, according to a LexisNexis search that I completed this evening, it was not until March 4, 1988 that Hamas was mentioned by name in an English media outlet.

That first mention came in an Associated Press article by Nicolas Tatro. The piece was titled, “Palestinians: United In the Street, Divided Over Peacemaking.”

Sheikh Bassam Jarrar stabbed the air with his finger and declared that a political settlement with Israel would be "disastrous." The Moslem religious leader said the Koran, Islam's holy book, "forbids recognition of Israel." He argued against cooperating with peace initiatives aimed at ending the three-month uprising in the Israeli-occupied lands.

Jarrar's remarks, criticial of the PLO's policy of seeking a settlement, provoked murmurs of disagreement from men sitting cross-legged along the wall of the mosque in this village 10 miles northwest of Jerusalem. The dispute, reflecting deep political divisions of Palestinians despite the unity they have shown in confronting Israeli soldiers, soon grew into a shouting match.

It cut short the gathering of more than 150 men, an informal town hall-type meeting where the heated exchanges continued outside the mosque under a tree despite a drizzle.

The first to challenge Jarrar, a charismatic speaker aligned with the fundamentalist Moslem Brotherhood, was a middle-aged man in a white headdress, who asked if there wasn't a peaceful alternative to street violence. The 39-year-old preacher left no room for compromise and warned that anyone who recognized the Jewish state would be considered an enemy of Islam.

"We don't have any common language with Israel. We have nothing to demand of them. We are in a state or revolt against Israel. The conflict should continue until victory," Jarrar said, his deep, resonant voice cracking with emotion.

A bearded man in his 20s accused Jarrar of breaking ranks with the Palestine Liberation Organization, which has endorsed an international conference to discuss peace with Israel. "The PLO represents all the people. There is no Islamic trend. There are only Moslems who support the PLO," shouted the young man, a supporter of PLO chairman Yasser Arafat's Fatah organization. "I represent the Islamic trend," said Jarrar, whose full black beard signified his fundamentalist allegiance.

A tall, muscular man rose to disagree with Jarrar's criticism of Syria and the Soviet Union. "We are in need of Syria. There is a PLO delegation visiting Damascus now to create a good atmosphere for fighting Israel We should support an alliance with Syria," he said.

The man, whose comments indicated he was a supporter of the pro-Soviet Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine faction, blamed Jarrar for provoking the dispute. "We have differences, it is true. But we are all supporting the uprising and we should not discuss them now," he said.

Jarrar attacked the PLO position, saying Arafat only had agreed to a conference after losing his independent base in Lebanon, being driven out of Beirut by Israel and out of the northern Lebanese city of Tripoli by Syria.

"It's impossible to have a peaceful alternative while we are in a weak position," Jarrar said. "I will not say there is a possibility of a political solution. It would be disastrous under the current conditions."

The infighting was also reflected in graffitti spray-painted on walls near the mosque.

One slogan attacking the peace mission of Secretary of State George Shultz was signed by the Democratic Front and another anti-occupation slogan by "Hamas," which means fervor in Arabic and is used by the Moslem Brothers, a movement founded in Egypt in 1929 by a school teacher named Hassan Al Banna.

Israeli officials, especially those of the right-wing Likud Bloc, have stressed the Islamic influence in the ongoing riots. They have argued that the fundamentalists threaten Western nations as well as Israel.

The influence of the fundamentalists has grown since the violence began Dec. 8. Islamic groups are especially strong in the occupied Gaza Strip, where there are more refugee camps than in the West Bank and poverty is widespread.

But PLO supporters appear to be in the vast majority in the West Bank, which Israel also seized in the 1967 Middle East war, and even Jarrar said the riots were not an "uprising of the mosques," as he said some Israeli leaders had claimed. "Israel wants to frighten the West by saying the fundamentalists are playing an active role. Israel wants to justify its oppression by saying they are fighting fundamentalists," Jarrar said.

He said the riots had damaged Israel's image in the world, hurt the Israeli economy by robbing it of Arab labor and tourism, and prevented the military government in the occupied lands from imposing new and more harsh measures. "They thought we were sleeping or dead," Jarrar said. "If there is no other benefit of the uprising it is to show that we reject oppression."

If anyone knows of an earlier mention of Hamas, by name, leave a comment or send an email.

Israeli Library Unveils Portions of the “Afghan Genizah”

Guest post by Challah Hu Akbar, aka Challah & CHA

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CHALLAH @ The Associated Press

A trove of ancient manuscripts in Hebrew characters rescued from caves in a Taliban stronghold in northern Afghanistan is providing the first physical evidence of a Jewish community that thrived there a thousand years ago.

On Thursday Israel's National Library unveiled the cache of recently purchased documents that run the gamut of life experiences, including biblical commentaries, personal letters and financial records.

Researchers say the "Afghan Genizah" marks the greatest such archive found since the "Cairo Genizah" was discovered in an Egyptian synagogue more than 100 years ago, a vast depository of medieval manuscripts considered to be among the most valuable collections of historical documents ever found.

Genizah, a Hebrew term that loosely translates as "storage," refers to a storeroom adjacent to a synagogue or Jewish cemetery where Hebrew-language books and papers are kept. Under Jewish law, it is forbidden to throw away writings containing the formal names of God, so they are either buried or stashed away.

The Afghan collection gives an unprecedented look into the lives of Jews in ancient Persia in the 11th century. The paper manuscripts, preserved over the centuries by the dry, shady conditions of the caves, include writings in Hebrew, Aramaic, Judea-Arabic and the unique Judeo-Persian language from that era, which was written in Hebrew letters.

… The documents are believed to have come from caves in the northeast region of modern-day Afghanistan, once at the outer reaches of the Persian empire. In recent years, the same caves have served as hideouts for Taliban insurgents in Afghanistan.

It remains unclear how the ancient manuscripts emerged. Ben-Shammai said the library was contacted by various antiquities dealers who got their hands on them

Last month, the library purchased 29 out of hundreds of the documents believed to be floating around the world, after long negotiations with antiquities dealers. The library refused to say how much it paid for the collection, adding that it hoped to purchase more in the future and didn't want to drive up prices. The documents arrived in Israel last week.

I wonder the relation between these documents and those discovered last year.

PA and Hamas Won’t Take in Palestinian Refugees from Syria

Guest post by Challah Hu Akbar, aka Challah & CHA

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Just a couple weeks ago, Mahmoud Abbas said that he was prepared to take in Palestinian refugees from Syria.

Abbas said he has asked United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to help in bringing the refugees to the Palestinian territories. This could include the West Bank,where Abbas governs, or the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip.

Yediot Ahronot reports, according to the Times of Israel, that Hamas and the Palestinian Authority are now against the idea.

Hamas and the Palestinian Authority rejected the United Nations’ request that they take in Palestinian refugees who fled Syria during the ongoing brutal civil war, Yedioth Ahronoth reported Thursday.

…According to the report, head of Hamas in Gaza Ismail Haniyeh told UNRWA, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency, that the Gaza Strip couldn’t take in Syria’s Palestinian refugees due to an ideological issue: If they take in the refugees from Syria, Israel could use it against them when it comes to the Palestinians’ demand for the “right to return” to villages inside present day Israel, by pointing out that the refugees no longer need to return to Israel because they have been relocated to new homes in the Gaza Strip.

The Palestinian Authority’s refusal stems from a different reason — a financial one. The PA, which, according to the report, initially inquired about absorbing the Palestinian refugees in Syria, has experienced severe budget cuts and has begged Arab leaders for millions of dollars in loans to solve its debt crisis. The PA’s coffers have been hurt following Israel’s decision not to hand over PA tax revenues and other related payments in the wake of President Mahmoud Abbas’s successful UN bid for nonmember observer status in November.

In related news, Hamas recently began a donation campaign for refugees displaced from Syria.

Morsi in 2010: Zionists are "Descendants of Apes and Pigs"

Guest post by Challah Hu Akbar, aka Challah & CHA

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CHALLAH @ MEMRI

Mohamed Morsi: These futile [Israeli-Palestinian] negotiations are a waste of time and opportunities. The Zionists buy time and gain more opportunities, as the Palestinians, the Arabs, and the Muslims lose time and opportunities, and they get nothing out of it. We can see how this dream has dissipated. This dream has always been an illusion. Yet some Palestinians, who erroneously believe that their enemies might give them something... This [Palestinian] Authority was created by the Zionist and American enemies for the sole purpose of opposing the will of the Palestinian people and its interests.

[...]

No reasonable person can expect any progress on this track. Either [you accept] the Zionists and everything they want, or else it is war. This is what these occupiers of the land of Palestine know – these blood-suckers, who attack the Palestinians, these warmongers, the descendants of apes and pigs.

[...]

We should employ all forms of resistance against them. There should be military resistance within the land of Palestine against those criminal Zionists, who attack Palestine and the Palestinians. There should also be political resistance and economic resistance through a boycott, as well as by supporting the resistance fighters. This should be the practice of the Muslims and the Arabs outside Palestine. They should support the resistance fighters and besiege the Zionist wherever they are. None of the Arab or Muslim peoples and regimes should have dealings with them. Pressure should be exerted upon them. They must not be given any opportunity, and must not stand on any Arab or Islamic land. They must be driven out of our countries.

[...]

Therefore, these negotiations must stop once and for all. Everybody must turn to the support of the resistance, which is the option chosen by the Palestinians and by us all – the Arabs and the Muslims, Palestinians and others. We must all realize that resistance is the only way to liberate the land of Palestine.

[...]

Al-Quds TV (Lebanon) March 20, 2010, via the Internet

The Zionists have no right to the land of Palestine. There is no place for them on the land of Palestine. What they took before 1947-8 constitutes plundering, and what they are doing now is a continuation of this plundering. By no means do we recognize their Green Line. The land of Palestine belongs to the Palestinians, not to the Zionists.

[...]

We must confront this Zionist entity. All ties of all kinds must be severed with this plundering criminal entity, which is supported by America and its weapons, as well as by its own nuclear weapons, the existence of which is well known. It will bring about their own destruction. The peoples must boycott this entity and avoid normalization of relations with it. All products from countries supporting this entity – from the U.S. and others – must be boycotted.

[...]

We want a country for the Palestinians on the entire land of Palestine, on the basis of [Palestinian] citizenship. All the talk about a two-state solution and about peace is nothing but an illusion, which the Arabs have been chasing for a long time now. They will not get from the Zionists anything but this illusion.

[...]

They have been fanning the flames of civil strife wherever they were throughout history. They are hostile by nature.

[...]

The Zionists understood nothing but the language of force.

[...]

Thursday Morning Links

From Ian

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The Palestinian Authority's Inconvenient Truths by Khaled Abu Toameh

"These are only some of the inconvenient truths that the Palestinian Authority does not want the outside world to know. Palestinian journalists often avoid reporting about such issues out of concern for their safety or for "ideological" reasons. These journalists have been taught that it is forbidden to hang out the dirty laundry. Western journalists, funders and decision-makers who deal with the Israeli-Palestinian conflict need to know that there are many truths being completely ignored or hidden from their eyes and ears."

Who are the extremists? Op-ed:

Norwegian citizen says it's time to confront anti-Israel activists with some tough questions "Who are the extremists? Those who believe Israel should tolerate thousands of missiles raining down on its citizens or those who believe that Israel (like any other country) has the right to defend its citizens and stop the rockets? Who are the extremists? Those who don't want Jews to live in certain areas of Jerusalem or those who want both Arabs and Jews to live freely in all of Jerusalem? And yet we, who are pro-Israel, are painted as the extremists. Has the world turned upside down?"

British 'anti-Israel' textbook is not British at all

The firm that produced the textbook which replaced Israel with 'Occupied Palestine' is in fact owned by the Lebanese 'Tahseen Khayat Group' "The firm owns various outlets, including Garnet's 'sister group' Ithaca Press and firms named All Prints and The International Press. While Garnet Education focuses on educational material, Ithaca Press decribes itself as a ‘leading publisher of academic books on Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies’, most recently featuring the ‘Great Books of Islamic Civilisation’ and books such as ‘Through the Wall of Fire’ which documents, “the ethnic cleansing of the Palestinians beginning in 1948”.

Study: Gaza Rockets Worse for Bedouin Kids than Jewish Kids

"Bedouin youth were angrier and more psychologically distressed than their Jewish counterparts by the rocket fire in November, according to a new Ben-Gurion University of the Negev study. It is the first follow-up study after the two weeks of rocket fire and subsequent Operation Pillar of Defense."

Cash-strapped PA seeks emergency funds from China and Russia, lambastes Arab states for lack of aid

PA has billion-dollar deficit; Algeria transfers $26 million to Palestinian coffers

FIFA asks Israel to restore VIP status of Palestinian soccer chief

Jibril Rajoub’s privileges rescinded last month due to ‘incitement to violence’ against Israel

Lebanese Intelligence Chief Says Israel is His Country’s Only Enemy

"A leading figure in Lebanese intelligence said Wednesday that the only enemy of his country is Israel. According to the Lebanese Broadcasting Corporation, Abbas Ibrahim, director-general of the General Security Department, said, “Lebanon’s one and only enemy is Israel.”

Jordanian minister accuses Israel of planning to erect the third Temple

Islamic Endowments Minister Abdul Salam Abadi says Israel wants to partition the Temple Mount

'Iranian Jew murdered, was dating IRGC's daughter'

Channel 2 reports that 24-year-old Daniel Magrufta murdered last week; Jewish community suspects girlfriend involved in murder.

Syria and Hezbollah won’t join the fight if Israel strikes Iran, top-level report predicts

Foreign Ministry says Assad can’t help Tehran for fear of losing power, Israel would launch massive ground operation in Lebanon if attacked

'Bulgaria police ID Burgas bombing accomplice'

Authorities seeking man who helped suicide bomber behind deaths of 5 Israeli tourists in July, Bulgarian media reports.

Swastika, anti-Semitic slogans spray-painted on Toulouse building

French city was the site of March 2012 attack that killed Jewish teacher and three school-children

German pol quits race over poems seen as anti-Semitic

Green Party welcomes withdrawal of candidate over ‘derogatory’ attack on ritual circumcision

No Joke: Al Jazeera Buying Al Gore’s Current TV

"If the deal is completed, Current will provide the pan-Arab news giant with something it has sought for years: a pathway into American living rooms. Current is available in about 60 million of the 100 million homes in the United States with cable or satellite service."

Jewish Life in Israel 1913 Footage

"The rule of law is a component of national security"

Guest post by Challah Hu Akbar, aka Challah & CHA

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The following is an excerpt from Combating Terrorism With Intelligence: The Normative Debate in Israel by Daphna Sharfman and Ephraim Kahana.

The normative and legal struggles in a country facing almost constant terrorism constitute the elements of the core debate in defining the morals and normative aspirations of Israeli society and maintaining the nation’s heterogenic character as manifested in its political culture. Nevertheless, the Israeli Supreme Court has managed to define and protect the young democracy’s normative standing since its inception, and it continues to do so even under the political and public criticisms expressed especially by right-of-center groups.

The Court’s leading voice was its president, Aharon Barak, who discussed the problem of a democracy facing terrorism over the years. He noted that terrorism creates much tension among the different elements of the state: While the elected representatives may wish to take all effective steps to fight terrorism, even if harmful to human rights, the democratic pillar of human rights may encourage the protection of the rights of every individual, including the terrorist, even at the cost of undermining the fight against terrorism. But even if struggling with this tension is primarily the task of the legislature and the executive, which are accountable to the people, they must justify their decision to the judges who are judicially responsible for protecting the principles of democracy, as Judge Barak put it:

We, the judges in modern democracies, are responsible for protecting democracy both from terrorism and from the means the state wants to use to fight terrorism. . . judges meet their supreme test in situations of war and terrorism . . . If we fail our role in times of war and terrorism, we will be unable to fulfill our role in times of peace and security . . . I must take human rights seriously during times of both peace and conflict. I must not make do with the mistaken belief that, at the end of the conflict, I can turn back the clock.

As to the centrality of judicial intervention, much debated in Israel, Barak wrote that the protection of human rights would be bankrupt if, during armed conflicts, the courts delayed the review of executive branch behavior until the period of emergency had ended. Instead, the judicial ruling must convey guidance and direction in the specific case before it.

In Israel, petitions from suspected terrorists reach the HCJ in real time, while the events being reviewed are still taking place, as in the question of interrogation by the security services. In general, as long as the security measures are applied within the alleged framework of the ‘‘zone of reasonableness,’’ no basis is present for judicial intervention. But ‘‘security considerations’’ are not magic words; the Court must be convinced that the security consideration was the dominant one and the measures used were proportional to the terrorist act. Justice Barak described the process:

In exercising judicial review . . . we do not make ourselves into security experts. We do not replace the military commander’s security considerations with our own. We take no position on the way security issues are handled. Our job is to maintain boundaries . . .We insist upon the legality of the military commander’s exercise of discretion and that it fall into the range of reasonableness, determined by the relevant legal norms applicable to the issue.

Barak viewed arguments against judicial review from both the left and right as unacceptable. Judicial review of the legality of the war on terrorism might make waging the conflict more difficult in the short term, but it could fortify society in the long term. Barak referred to his dissenting opinion in the case of the pardon given to the heads of the Security Service (ISA) by Israel’s then-President Chaim Herzog in the 1984 Bus 300 affair. Barak emphasized the centrality of the rule of law and its power over everyone, including the state’s security apparatus:

There is no security without law. The rule of law is a component of national security . . . the strength of the Service lies in the public’s confidence in it. Its strength lies in the court’s confidence in it. If security considerations tip the scales, neither the public nor the court will have confidence in the Security Service and the lawfulness of its interrogations.

Under a continuous state of emergency since its establishment, Israel is always a target of terrorist organizations. The need to deal with security emergencies led the HCJ to realize the importance of preserving fundamental democratic principles in times of war. Over the years, it has handed down rulings concerning security issues that restricted the force that the executive branch could apply, including interrogation methods used against security detainees or administrative detention.

In Israel, as in other democracies, the ISA’s role in obtaining intelligence in the struggle against terrorism is far from being a neutral, professional issue. Society and its institutions are involved, and they largely direct that sensitive process. The legal tension is always there. As Michael Ignatieff has pointed out, the secret services and the defense forces regularly conduct a controversial ‘‘relentless and brutal campaign’’ against terrorists, but inside the country, the campaign must remain under democratic authorization and judicial review:

Generals publicly question its effectiveness, pilots express moral and tactical qualms about certain operations, columnists insist these operations make Israel less, not more, secure, and so on, yet through it all Israeli democracy is surviving the ordeal

3,000 Trees to be Planted in Israel for Newtown Victims

Guest post by Challah Hu Akbar, aka Challah & CHA

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CHALLAH @ JTA

More than 2,000 people have donated funds to plant a grove of more than 3,000 trees in Israel in memory of the victims of the Newtown shooting. Hadassah has raised more than $61,000 toward the planting of trees honoring the 26 victims of the Dec. 14 massacre at the Sandy Hook Elementary School.

The trees will be part of the Beersheva River Park, a 1,700-acre water, environmental and commercial area being constructed by the Jewish National Fund in Israel’s desert city.

The idea for the Newtown grove grew from a request made by Veronique Pozner, whose son, Noah, was the only Jewish victim of the shooting at the Connecticut school. Pozner said memorial contributions could be directed toward the planting of trees in Israel.