Elder Of Ziyon - Israel News

Wednesday, January 09, 2013

Wednesday Morning Links

From Ian:

Academic: Israeli-Arab pols fomenting extremism

"An article published this month argues, based on economic and other data, that Israeli Arabs’ standard of living has risen dramatically, while Israeli Arab leaders have increasingly radicalized their community." "Entitled “Israel’s Arabs: Deprived or Radicalized?” the article cites statistical evidence demonstrating that Israeli Arabs have had an increasingly better quality of life since the Jews began settling in large numbers in British Mandate-era Palestine. For this reason, Arabs continued to move to Jewish population centers in order to improve their socioeconomic living conditions."

IDF Blog: Terror Attacks in 2012: The Ones You’ve Heard About and the Ones You Haven’t

In 2012, Israel suffered terror attacks on all fronts. Some made headline news around the world. Most of the others you’ve probably never heard about. Here’s our rundown of the major terror attacks in 2012.

Missing Peace: Swiss graduate in thesis : PA uses water as a political weapon

"A thesis titled ‘The politicization of the Oslo water agreement’ written by Lauro Burkart a Swiss graduate of the Institute of International and Development studies in Geneva gives a more accurate and impartial picture of the topic of the scarcity of water in the Palestinian Authority."

Richard Millet: Palestine Solidarity Campaign activist says he wants to kill Israelis.

"I did have a polite discussion with a 23 year old who had just finished studying accountancy. We talked about the history of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Needless to say we disagreed on everything but he did tell me of his future plans. He wanted to leave his family and head to Pakistan to start up a political party that would “bomb the whole of Israel”.

MEMRI: PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas Commemorates "Martyrs" from Fatah, Hamas, and Other Factions

PMW: PA mayor: Israeli army shapes explosives like toys to target Palestinian children

"Palestinian Media Watch has reported how similar libels were voiced by the PA during the PA's terror campaign (the Intifada). In 2003, PA TV viewers were told that Israelis "drop objects from jet planes that attract children to play with them and then they blow up. These are bombs and mines designed as toys."

Daphne Anson: A Mondoweiss Contributor Reports On Gaza For The BBC

"The website article in question is the work of a woman who appears to be a seasoned anti-Israel campaigner."

Iran Takes Off the Mask, Admits Sanctions Hit Oil Exports

"An Iranian minister breaks ranks with President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and admits US-backed sanctions have sliced oil exports by 45 percent – but says the nuclear weapon program continues."

Syria: 5 Dead as Fighting Returns to 'Palestinian' Camp

Syrian fighting has returned to an area of Damascus which serves as a camp for people registered as "Palestinian refugees."

Poland probes artist’s claim that he used Holocaust victims’ ash to ‘paint’ a picture

Ghoulish work was displayed in a Swedish gallery and later pulled following protests from Jewish groups

UEFA Launches Disciplinary Proceedings Against Lazio for “Alleged Racist Behavior” Towards Tottenham’s Jewish Fans

"UEFA has begun disciplinary proceedings against Rome, Italy’s Lazio football club for its fan’s “alleged racist behavior” toward British club Tottenham’s fans during a match in Rome in November. The Lazio fans chanted “Juden Tottenham” and held up signs that read “Free Palestine” in an effort to taunt Tottenham’s fans. Tottenham is an historically Jewish neighborhood in London and has a large Jewish fan base."

FIFA punishes Bulgaria, Hungary for racist, anti-Semitic incidents

Both national teams to pay fines, play in empty stadiums as a disciplinary measure

France Jews seek names of anti-Semites on Twitter

Jewish students' union takes issue of anti-Semitic tweets to Paris court after Twitter refuses to hand over details of account holders.

In tense Swedish city, young Muslim crusades against anti-Semitism

The son of immigrants from Iran, Siavosh Derakhti recently won an award for his efforts to promote tolerance and educate about the Holocaust

Top exporters get award from Peres

In 2011 an amazing 40% of Israel’s GDP was based on exports, and the president recognized some of the country’s biggest exporters at a ceremony

Israeli 2012 Tech Exits Top $5.5 Billion

"Israeli tech startups were bought out for a record total of $5.5 billion in 2012, according to a report published Monday. The report also suggests a maturity in the Israeli sector with fewer, but larger, deals transacted. The report by analysts Pricewaterhouse Coopers showed 2012 had 50 deals with an average deal size of $111 million, compared with 63 deals with an average size of $81 million in 2011. The report didn’t cover IPOs."

Iran Behind Hacking of American Banks

Guest post by Challah Hu Akbar, aka CHA or Challah

***

CHALLAH @ New York Times

The attackers hit one American bank after the next. As in so many previous attacks, dozens of online banking sites slowed, hiccupped or ground to a halt before recovering several minutes later.

But there was something disturbingly different about the wave of online attacks on American banks in recent weeks. Security researchers say that instead of exploiting individual computers, the attackers engineered networks of computers in data centers, transforming the online equivalent of a few yapping Chihuahuas into a pack of fire-breathing Godzillas. The skill required to carry out attacks on this scale has convinced United States government officials and security researchers that they are the work of Iran, most likely in retaliation for economic sanctions and online attacks by the United States.

“There is no doubt within the U.S. government that Iran is behind these attacks,” said James A. Lewis, a former official in the State and Commerce Departments and a computer security expert at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington.

...Since September, intruders have caused major disruptions to the online banking sites of Bank of America, Citigroup, Wells Fargo, U.S. Bancorp, PNC, Capital One, Fifth Third Bank, BB&T and HSBC. They employed DDoS attacks, or distributed denial of service attacks, named because hackers deny customers service by directing large volumes of traffic to a site until it collapses. No bank accounts were breached and no customers’ money was taken.

By using data centers, the attackers are simply keeping up with the times. Companies and consumers are increasingly conducting their business over large-scale “clouds” of hundreds, even thousands, of networked computer servers

...A hacker group calling itself Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Cyber Fighters has claimed in online posts that it was responsible for the attacks.

...But American intelligence officials say the group is actually a cover for Iran. They claim Iran is waging the attacks in retaliation for Western economic sanctions and for a series of cyberattacks on its own systems.

Wife of Hamas MP: A Woman's Role Is to Instill Love of Jihad and Martyrdom in Her Children

Guest post by Challah Hu Akbar, aka CHA or Challah

***

CHALLAH @ MEMRI

Umm Osama: Women in Palestine play a great role in raising their children and in encouraging them to wage Jihad for the sake of Allah. This is absolutely the most glorious thing a woman can do. Women play their role and are not inferior to men. When a man goes to wage Jihad, his wife does not say "Don't go" or try to stop him. She encourages and supports him. She is the one who prepares his equipment, bids him farewell, and welcomes [his Jihad]. She instills in her children the love of Jihad and martyrdom for the sake of Allah. If every mother were to prevent her son from waging Jihad for the sake of Allah, who would wage Jihad? Who would support Palestine? Palestine is dear to us, and its price is paid with our body remains and our lifeblood. Is not Allah's reward precious? Allah's reward is Paradise. Paradise requires from us our blood, our body remains, and our efforts for its sake.

[...] Sister, Jihad is ordained for us. It is our duty to wage Jihad, because either we wage Jihad or...

Interviewer: We want to die as martyrs.

Umm Osama: Indeed we do. I am constantly praying: "Allah, make the end of our days be in martyrdom." I pray for this even for my husband and my children. None of us want to die in our beds. We pray that Allah will grant us Paradise. [...]

Hamas Sentences Fatah Terrorist to 15 Years in Jail

Guest post by Challah Hu Akbar, aka CHA or Challah

***

CHALLAH @ Ma’an News Agency

A military court in Gaza City on Tuesday sentenced a Fatah military leader to 15 years in jail. Muhammad al-Sakani told Ma’an that his brother Zaki was accused of terrorism and illegally possessing explosives and weapons.

Muhammad condemned the verdict as unjust and vowed to appeal the decision. Zaki, from Gaza City’s Shujaiyya neighborhood, was detained four years ago and held in a Gaza jail.

Fatah denounced the verdict in a statement, describing it as "unjust because it was issued by an illegitimate court, and because the motive behind the verdict was merely political." "The man was a prominent leader of Fatah’s al-Aqsa Brigades and one of its best fighters."

What exactly did al-Sakani do?

Al-Sakani, born in 1965, was once wanted by Israeli authorities for his role in explosives-manufacturing, according to Fatah-affiliated websites.

As the second Palestinian intifada entered its second year, according to Fatah sources, al-Sakani along with late Fatah leader Abdul-Muti al-Sabaawi designed the first homemade mortar shell and went on to produce hundreds of shells.

As a result, the Israeli intelligence tried to hunt him down through several targeted assassinations, including one which injured him in Gaza City while he was launching mortar shells at an Israeli settlement, before Israeli forces disengaged from the coastal enclave.

After Hamas took control of the Gaza Strip in July 2008, the security services of Hamas stormed his home in the Zaytoun neighborhood, but he escaped, Fatah sources said. Hamas forces confiscated his handgun, a homemade projectile and several mortar shells and explosives, as well as a computer. On July 25, 2008 five high profile leaders of the Hamas' military wing were killed in an explosion near the beach in Gaza City and about 40 civilians were injured. Hamas then accused al-Sakani of being behind that explosion.

In August 2008, the Hamas-affiliated website Palestine Today quoted sources privy to the details as saying that security services in Gaza detained four suspects including Zaki al-Sakani, a Fatah-affiliated explosives expert. Al-Sakani was in al-Shifa hospital when he was arrested and jailed, having survived an assassination attempt a day earlier. A group of gunmen had opened fire on al-Sakani and he underwent a surgery before he was jailed by Hamas' security.

Photos of Robert Levinson Released, Iran Seen as Responsible

Guest post by Challah Hu Akbar, aka CHA or Challah

***

CHALLAH @ The Associated Press

Two years after a hostage video and photographs of retired FBI agent Robert Levinson raised the possibility that the missing American was being held by terrorists, U.S. officials now see the government of Iran behind the images, intelligence officials told The Associated Press.

Levinson, a private investigator, disappeared in 2007 on the Iranian island of Kish. The Iranian government has repeatedly denied knowing anything about his disappearance, and the disturbing video and photos that Levinson's family received in late 2010 and early 2011 seemed to give credence to the idea.

The extraordinary photos — showing Levinson's hair wild and gray, his beard long and unkempt — are being seen for the first time publicly after the family provided copies to the AP. The video has been previously released.

In response to Iran's repeated denials, and amid secret conversations with Iran's government, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said in a statement in March 2011 that Levinson was being held somewhere in South Asia. The implication was that Levinson might be in the hands of terrorist group or criminal organization somewhere in Pakistan or Afghanistan.

The statement was a goodwill gesture to Iran, one that the U.S. hoped would prod Tehran to help bring him home.

But nothing happened.

Two years later, with the investigation stalled, the consensus now among some U.S. officials involved in the case is that despite years of denials, Iran's intelligence service was almost certainly behind the 54-second video and five photographs of Levinson that were emailed anonymously to his family. The tradecraft used to send those items was too good, indicating professional spies were behind them, the officials said, speaking on the condition of anonymity because they weren't authorized to talk publicly. While everything dealing with Iran is murky, their conclusion is based on the U.S. government's best intelligence analysis....

Levinson's family runs this website.

Israeli Intelligence Likely Saved Thousands of Syrian Lives

Guest post by Challah Hu Akbar, aka CHA or Challah

***

CHALLAH @ New York Times

In the last days of November, Israel’s top military commanders called the Pentagon to discuss troubling intelligence that was showing up on satellite imagery: Syrian troops appeared to be mixing chemicals at two storage sites, probably the deadly nerve gas sarin, and filling dozens of 500-pounds bombs that could be loaded on airplanes.

Within hours President Obama was notified, and the alarm grew over the weekend, as the munitions were loaded onto vehicles near Syrian air bases. In briefings, administration officials were told that if Syria’s increasingly desperate president, Bashar al-Assad, ordered the weapons to be used, they could be airborne in less than two hours — too fast for the United States to act, in all likelihood.

What followed next, officials said, was a remarkable show of international cooperation over a civil war in which the United States, Arab states, Russia and China have almost never agreed on a common course of action.

Read the rest.

Egypt’s Constitution May Prevent Bahais from Enrolling in Public Schools

Guest post by Challah Hu Akbar, aka CHA or Challah

***

CHALLAH @ Egypt Independent

The education minister has repeated remarks that Bahais cannot enroll in public schools, saying it violates the Constitution. “The Constitution only recognizes the three Abrahamic religions,” Ibrahim Ghoneim told Akbar Al-Youm newspaper Saturday. “And as religion is a subject taught in schools, they do not meet the requirements for enrollment.”

Ghoneim had told Al-Sabah newspaper the same statement in November, when he was asked, “What is the position of the ministry concerning the children of Bahais? Do they have the right to enroll in a [ministry-affiliated] school?” The minister responded by saying, “The state only recognizes three religions, and the Bahai faith is not among them. Thus their children do not have the right to register in government schools.”

And

An Egyptian official admitted on Monday that Bahai children will face major problems enrolling in state-run schools as a result of the new Constitution. Mohamed al-Sorougy, the Education Minister's media adviser, told Ona news agency that Egyptian Bahais will face problems enrolling because the new Constitution only recognizes three religions: Islam, Christianity and Judaism.

Sorougy didn’t confirm or deny statements by Education Minister Ibrahim Ghoneim saying that Bahais are forbidden from enrolling in public schools because of the Constitution. He said, however, that 2 million children enroll annually in the schools and that creating a problem for a few of them is not right.

The problems facing Bahai children are further complicated by Article 60 of the new Constitution, which mandates religious education in state schools. Muslims and Christians study their own religions, but the government is unsure how to offer Bahais religious instruction if they enroll in schools.

Head of Iran's Quds Force Met with Morsi Advisors

Guest post by Challah Hu Akbar, aka CHA or Challah

***

Around a week ago reports started appearing in the Arabic press, sometimes quoting the Israeli media, suggesting that the head of Iran’s Quds Force, Gen. Qassem Soleimani, recently met with an adviser to Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi.

The Times now confirms the reports.

Egypt’s Islamist Government has enlisted covert help from Iran to strengthen its grip on power, dealing another blow to Cairo’s fragile relationship with the West. Qassem Suleimani, Iran’s spy chief, visited the Egyptian capital just after Christmas for two days of talks with senior officials close to President Mohamed Morsi, The Times has learnt.

Mr Suleimani, who oversees Iran’s proxy militias across the region, including Hezbollah and Hamas, travelled at the invitation of Mr Morsi’s Government and his powerful backers in the Muslim Brotherhood.

The spy chief met Essam al-Haddad, foreign affairs adviser to Mr Morsi, and officials from the Brotherhood to advise the government on building its security and intelligence apparatus independent of the national intelligence services, which are controlled by Egypt's military.

… Two members of the Muslim Brotherhood's "guidance office" Maktab al-Irshad confirmed details of Mr Suleimani's visit. "The government requested a high-level meeting with Iranian officials. Iran sent Suleimani," said one official.

"The meeting was intended to send a message to America, which is putting pressure on the Egyptian government, that we should be allowed to have other alliances with anyone we please."

Soleimani was recently deemed the “World’s Most Dangerous Person.”

Tuesday Morning Links

From Ian:

***

David Frum: Where is the Palestinian state-in-embryo?

"Palestinian nationalism often seems a mirror-image of the Zionist project, but with this one crucial difference: Over the half century before the foundation of the State of Israel, the Zionist movement pre-built the institutions of a state. The Zionist movement built not only a proto-government and the elements of an army, but charitable institutions, educational institutions, even artistic institutions.The Jewish state, when it came, was voted by the UN. But it was in no sense a gift from anybody, let alone an international organization."

PLO Officials: No 'Palestine' Passport for Now

Abbas will not rush to issue "State of Palestine" passports, fearing a conflict with Israel, PLO officials claim.

Alan Dershowitz: President's Nomination of Hagel May Encourage Iran's Nuclear Ambitions

"President Obama's nomination of Chuck Hagel as Secretary of Defense risks increasing the likelihood that Iran will develop nuclear weapons. It poses that risk because Hagel is well known for his opposition both to sanctions against Iran and to employing the military option if necessary. These views are inconsistent with the very different views expressed by President Obama. The President has emphasized on numerous occasions that he will never allow Iran to develop nuclear weapons and will use military force if necessary to prevent that "game changer."

The Christian Aid Conference on Peace and Justice in the Holy Land

Something has gone badly wrong when a conference of Christians praises the side most prone to violence and least disposed to peace; presents falsehoods as facts, and even denies that there is serious persecution of their own brethren in the Palestinian territories. "Do Christian hearts not grieve for Jewish children forced to cower in bomb shelters, day in and day out? But none of these facts was mentioned by any of the speakers. Not one speaker at any point, in fact, had the honesty to say one word about the several wars started by Arab armies invading Israel, nor the thousands of Israelis killed and injured in terrorist attacks, including suicide bombings."

PMW: Fatah’s Facebook: Glorifying terror, inciting hatred, and erasing Israel

Fatah’s heroes: Saddam Hussein, Dalal Mughrabi and the rifle

BBC Watch: BBC: Al Jazeera in US market to promote football tournament

"It is well known that Al Jazeera’s English language operation (launched in 2006) tones down its coverage in comparison to its less subtle Arabic department, which has fawned over the terrorist child-murderer Samir Kuntar and features as its most popular programme the weekly rantings of Qatari-based Yusuf Qaradawi – spiritual leader of the Muslim Brotherhood and a virulent homophobe and antisemite. Nevertheless, Al Jazeera English remains firmly on target as the vector of the Qatari regime’s agenda, as some of its former employees have disclosed."

Egypt Pres To Obama: Free Terrorist Blind Sheikh

WOLF BLITZER, CNN HOST: I asked the Egyptian President about the blind Egyptian cleric who was convicted here in the United States in connection with the 1993 World Trade Center bombing. Omar Abdel-Rahman is serving a life sentence in a U.S. prison.

Egypt Seeks $500B from Israel for Sinai Damage

"Israel stole just under $50 billion worth of sand"

This was reported by EOZ on January 07 2012 Report: Egypt demanding $500 billion from Israel for Sinai damage

Egyptian Who 'Invited' Jews 'Back Home' Resigns Post (h/t Zvi)

Essam el-Erian, a top advisor to Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi, has resigned from his position, Egyptian media reported Sunday. "Although the report said that el-Arian had willingly made the decision because he was “occupied with other work,” analysts said that there was no doubt that he was pressure to quit – after inviting back to Egypt the descendants of Jews who were thrown out of the country, or who fled due to anti-Semitic violence."

Egypt foils bomb plot near Gaza border

On Monday, Egyptian authorities foiled a car bomb plot in the city of Rafah, near Gaza….Those behind the plot are currently unknown, though Al Arabiya quoted an Egyptian security source as saying that it was "probably radical Islamists whom security forces have been tracking for months." According to the Associated Press, "[t]he military said it suspects the gunmen preparing the car bomb are from the Gaza Strip and entered Egypt illegally through underground tunnels." Following the seizure of the explosives and weapons, Egyptian authorities announced a security alert. A military source has told Ma'an News Agency that "intelligence services have received information in the last few hours about planned attacks by groups in the Sinai."

Report: Hezbollah Sends 5,000 Fighters to Syria to Help Assad

"Some 5,000 Hezbollah fighters crossed from Lebanon into Syria last month to fight on the side of Bashar al-Assad’s forces the Al Watan newspaper reported on Monday. According to the paper, nearly 300 of those fighters have been killed in the last several days."

Atlanta’s medical technology industry getting shot in the arm

"EndoChoice, an Alpharetta-based company that sells endoscopy devices, said Friday it plans to merge with an Israeli-based medical firm in a deal that would create 200 new jobs, mostly in metro Atlanta. The company also announced it raised $43 million from a well-known Silicon Valley venture capital firm, Sequoia Capital, to fuel its growth."

Iran's Press TV Acts Like Iran's Press TV

Guest post by Challah Hu Akbar, aka CHA or Challah

***

Iran's Press TV is known for being well...Iran's Press TV.

Here are the latest examples.

West Bank Terror Jumps in November & December

Guest post by Challah Hu Akbar, aka CHA or Challah

***

Throughout the Israeli media today there have been a number of reports based off the latest monthly report (I used it already for a post on Sunday) from the Shin Bet. For example, Ynet has a story titled, “West Bank sees rise in terror attacks,” while the Times of Israel has one titled, “Terror attacks in West Bank, Jerusalem on the rise.”

Below is the data straight up. While most of the other reports have combined the number of attacks in the West Bank and Jerusalem, I have only included the number of attacks counted in the West Bank.

Month	# of Attacks in West Bank
January	27
February	42
March	43
April	36
May	50
June	48
July	30
August	19
September	39
October	39
November	122
December	81
Total	576

90-year-old Saudi Weds 15-year-old Girl

Guest post by Challah Hu Akbar, aka CHA or Challah

***

CHALLAH @ Al Arabiya

The recent marriage of a 90-year-old Saudi man to a 15-year-old girl has sparked condemnation from human rights and social media activists in the kingdom. On Twitter especially, activists criticized the parents of the girl for giving her to a man decades older than her. In an interview, the groom insisted that his marriage was “legal and correct,” and that he paid a $17,500 (SAR 65,000) dowry to marry the girl, who is the daughter of a Yemeni father and Saudi mother.

The 90-year-old told the story of his first night with the bride. He said she entered the bedroom before him, and she locked the door from inside so he could not enter. This, he said, made him “suspicious about some kind of conspiracy” by the girl and her mother. He vowed to sue his in-laws to give him back the girl or return him the expensive dowry.

Close friends of the bride’s family said she was frightened on the wedding night, and locked herself in the room for two successive days before fleeing back to her parents’ home. The member of the Saudi National Association for Human Rights (NSHR), Suhaila Zein al-Abedin, urged authorities to intervene “as soon as possible to save this child from tragedy.”

Abedin noted that marriage in Islam must be based on mutual consent, and this was not satisfied, as demonstrated by the girl’s move to lock herself in the room. She said the girl’s parents were also to be held responsible for marrying their daughter to a man the age of her great grandfather.

Abedin urged the establishment of a minimum age of 18 for marrying girls, saying this would pave the way for punishing violators, according to a report by al-Hayat newspaper. Jamal al-Toueiki, a psychologist, said forced marriage may subject girls to abuse and violence, and this could lead to their suicide if nothing is done to save them.

Anti-Semitic Incidents Up in Austria

Guest post by Challah Hu Akbar, aka CHA or Challah

***

CHALLAH @ Israel Hayom

The leader of Vienna's Jewish community says the number of anti-Semitic incidents in Austria reported to his office have doubled over the past year and adds that Jews feel threatened elsewhere in the EU as well. Jewish community president Oskar Deutsch tells the Kurier newspaper that the Jewish community registered 135 such incidents last year, compared to 71 in 2011.

In comments published Monday, he named Hungary, Sweden, Norway, Finland, France and Greece as the EU countries where Jews are most under threat, adding that fearful Jewish families in Hungary have recently started to immigrate to Austria.

Burgas Bombing Investigator Sacked over Leak

Guest post by Challah Hu Akbar, aka CHA or Challah

***

CHALLAH @ Sofia News Agency

The Prosecutor's Office has dismissed investigator Staneliya Karadzhova as member of the team investigating the July 18 terror act in Bulgaria's Black city of Burgas.

Karadzhova has been dismissed on January 3 by the Burgas Regional Prosecutor on grounds the investigator leaked in the media classified information about latest developments in the probe.

On the same day, Karadzhova told the 24 Chasa (24 Hours) daily that Bulgarian police authorities have learned the real identity of one of the accomplices of the Burgas bus bomber.

The Interior Ministry declined refuting officially the above statement, with Kalin Georgiev, Chief Secretary of the Interior, only saying that any comments on the subject would be detrimental for the investigation.

For a rundown of basically everything related to the Burgas attack and the ongoing investigation go here.

Monday Morning Links

From Ian

***

The Legal Case for Israel Video by Professor Eugene Kontorovich VIDEO

JPost Editorial: Palestinian irresponsibility

"Instead of choosing a path of self-empowerment and accepting responsibility for their own fate, Fayyad and other Palestinian leaders have opted yet again for the well-traversed road of self-victimization. Apparently, Palestinian leaders in the West Bank believe they will succeed in deflecting growing anger and frustration on the Palestinian street and redirect toward Israel. We hope they are wrong."

Barry Rubin: Al Gore Sells Out (to al-Jazeera)

"What would you call it if a former vice-president of the United States had sold his television network to a fascist or Communist front group at a time when such forces threatened America? Nothing very nice. But now Al Gore has sold out his admittedly obscure channel to al-Jazeera and taken a position on its board. Here's an interview of myself on this issue."

MEMRI: Chief Islamic Judge of PA: We Want to File Suit against Britain for Balfour Declaration “Crime” VIDEO and Wife of Hamas MP Al-Hayya: A Woman's Role Is to Instill Love of Jihad and Martyrdom in Her Children VIDEO

Supporting our Own Demise: Part 1 Terror Finance

"Successive British Governments continue to tolerate the existence of large charities that encourage and provide for Islamist terror groups. By failing to separate British Muslims from the Islamist charities that exploit them, we flatter and legitimize supporters of terrorism as humanitarians and community leaders. In the US, the charity Interpal is a proscribed organization: when you help terror groups build homes, you are also helping terror groups build bombs."

Egypt: Bahais cannot enroll in public schools, education minister says

"The education minister has repeated remarks that Bahais cannot enroll in public schools, saying it violates the Constitution. "The Constitution only recognizes the three Abrahamic religions,” Ibrahim Ghoneim told Akbar Al-Youm newspaper Saturday. “And as religion is a subject taught in schools, they do not meet the requirements for enrollment.”

Egypt’s Morsi remakes cabinet, increasing Islamist presence

"Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi rebuilt his cabinet Sunday, replacing 10 ministers and amplifying the Islamist presence in the government. The move, in which at least three Islamists were appointed to head major economic ministries, comes a day ahead of a planned visit by a top International Monetary Fund official to discuss an impending $4.8 billion loan."

Chavez and the Jews: A sorry tale

"Before Chavez came to power in 1999, there were 30,000 Jews in Venezuela. Now, the community has dwindled to just less than 9,000. Having experienced virtually no anti-Semitism in their history, the Chavez years ushered in a set of new and frightening experiences for Venezuela’s Jews, from cartoons in the press that could have been lifted from the notorious Nazi newspaper, Der Sturmer, to the vandalism of the main synagogue in Caracas in 2009. As a depressing summary by Tel Aviv University’s Kantor Center for the Study of Anti-Semitism noted last September, “Recent years have witnessed a rise in anti-Semitic manifestations, including vandalism, media attacks, caricatures, and physical attacks on Venezuelan Jewish institutions.”

Israelis to design San Diego-area desalination plant

IDE Americas Inc., a subsidiary of Israel’s IDE Technologies Ltd, to design project - the largest of its kind in western hemisphere. "The Israeli desalination giant that is already responsible for the brunt of Israel’s salty-to-fresh water transformation is now taking on San Diego, in the biggest desalination project to hit the western hemisphere."

GPS for brain surgeons

A line of products trusted by neurosurgeons and neuroscience researchers on six continents was developed by a Christian-Arab couple in Nazareth, Israel. "The company’s recording and stimulation tools, which have both FDA (US) and CE (Europe) approvals, are helpful in two realms. Neuroscientists use them in the lab to understand more about the human brain, and neurosurgeons use them for treating patients with a variety of neural disorders such as Parkinson’s disease and dystonia, a nervous system disorder that causes involuntary muscles contractions and spasms."

Drillers herald new Israeli gas find

"Israeli and Norwegian energy companies said they encountered a significant amount of natural gas in an offshore Israeli field. Norwegian energy company AGR said it encountered "significant signs of natural gas" during drilling operations in the Aphrodite-2 exploration well in the offshore Ishai license block. The well encountered a gas layer of 49 feet, the Platts news service reports."

A herbal remedy for the ‘bug crisis’

Farmers nowadays are using more pesticides than ever. An innovation based on Negev herbs may be even more effective. "Herbs are for more than just tea — they may be the next big thing in the fight against pests. Particularly one herb that grows in Israel’s Negev desert, whose medicinal properties have been known to the Bedouin for generations. Yaniv Kitron of Israel’s EdenShield has discovered that it works pretty well as a natural “pesticide,” too."