Samira Ibrahim responds to award being postponed with another anti-Jewish tweet

From the WaPo:

The Obama administration is postponing an award for an Egyptian activist who rallied worldwide attention against forced “virginity tests” on female protesters because of anti-American and anti-Semitic comments discovered on her Twitter account.

The State Department announced earlier this week that Samira Ibrahim would be among 10 recipients of the International Women of Courage award presented by Secretary of State John Kerry and first lady Michelle Obama on Friday.

But State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said Thursday the U.S. would hold off on awarding Ibrahim while officials investigate the tweets, which include support for attacks against U.S. diplomatic installations and praise for a terrorist assault against Israeli citizens in Bulgaria.

Ibrahim, who has already arrived in the U.S, says her account was hacked, though the comments stretch back several months.

The Weekly Standard broke the story, and detailed the offensive tweets:

On Twitter, Ibrahim is quite blunt regarding her views. On July 18 of last year, after five Israeli tourists and a Bulgarian bus driver were killed a suicide bombing attack, Ibrahim jubilantly tweeted: “An explosion on a bus carrying Israelis in Burgas airport in Bulgaria on the Black Sea. Today is a very sweet day with a lot of very sweet news.”

Ibrahim frequently uses Twitter to air her anti-Semitic views. Last August 4, commenting on demonstrations in Saudi Arabia, she described the ruling Al Saud family as “dirtier than the Jews.” Seventeen days later she tweeted in reference to Adolf Hitler: “I have discovered with the passage of days, that no act contrary to morality, no crime against society, takes place, except with the Jews having a hand in it. Hitler.”

Ibrahim holds other repellent views as well. As a mob was attacking the United States embassy in Cairo on the eleventh anniversary of 9/11, pulling down the American flag and raising the flag of Al Qaeda, Ibrahim wrote on twitter: “Today is the anniversary of 9/11. May every year come with America burning.” Possibly fearing the consequences of her tweet, she deleted it a couple of hours later, but not before a screen shot was saved by an Egyptian activist.

Just today, apparently after having been warned that her vicious tweets might cause her trouble during her visit to the U.S., she has written on twitter: “My account has been previously stolen and any tweet on racism and hatred is not me.” However, in the past she never made any mention of her account being “stolen.” The record of her anti-Semitic tweets is still available online.

The idea that her Twitter account was hacked is, frankly, ludicrous.

Tonight, her first reaction to the award being postponed was this:

رفضت الاعتذار للوبى الصهيونى فى امريكا عن تصريحات سابقة معادية للصهيونية تحت ضغوط من الحكومة الامريكية فتم سحب الجائزة #سميرة_ابراهيم

I refuse to apologize to the Zionist lobby in America under pressure from the U.S. government for previous statements hostile to Zionism

Ah, you see, she's not anti-semitic! She is merely a victim of the Jewish - er, Zionist Lobby!

Seriously, anti-semitism in Egypt is so endemic, that this sort of thing is inevitable. But the West usually sweeps Arab anti-semitism under the rug, so the times that it gets mainstream exposure causes a collective gasp - and then gets ignored again until the next time.

Don't hold your breath waiting for Arab intellectuals or pundits to criticize Ibrahim in any Arabic-language media. On the contrary, the "Zionist Lobby" excuse is far more likely.

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"Israel planning to demolish Al Aqsa before Obama visit"

The nutty rumors continue in the Arabic press.

This one, in both Islamic Jihad's Palestine Today and Hamas' Felesteen, says that "the occupation is accelerating efforts to demolish Al-Aqsa Mosque with U.S. blessing" before President Obama's planned visit to Israel on March 20.

Adnan Husseini, head of the Waqf, says that Israel plans to replace the mosque with the Third Temple. Moreover, he charges that there is a seven-step plan to destroy the mosque, and Israel has already implemented six of them, including clearing the Kotel plaza, building synagogues in the Old City and archaeological digs that are presumably meant to weaken the foundations of the mosque.

Of course, the idea that this is being planned is ludicrous.

But now that I had my tour of the area and see that the Al Aqsa Mosque is built completely on part of the Temple Mount that was expanded by Herod, and not near the "Holy of Holies," the idea of  building a synagogue on one of the large open spaces on the southern part of the Mount doesn't bother me at all.

It is a sad fact that the idea of equal rights between Jews and Muslims on the Temple Mount is considered a crazy radical right-wing idea.

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Thursday Links Part 2

From Ian:

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Jewish Harvard Students Receive Mock Eviction Notices
Jewish students at Harvard University receive mock eviction notices in light of “Israel Apartheid Week.”

In Harvard University’s latest attempt to promote the delegitimization of the state of Israel, Jewish students in freshman and upper class dormitories received mock eviction notices in light of “Israel Apartheid Week”, which is currently being organized on college and university campuses worldwide.
The campaign, organized by the Harvard Palestine Solidarity Committee, distributed notices at the beginning of March which read, “We regret to inform you that your suite is scheduled for demolition in the next three days”, a reference to the group’s views regarding Israel’s treatment of the Arab population.
The Anti Defamation League (ADL) expressed outrage over the prestigious university’s latest attempts to daunt Jewish students and demonize the state of Israel saying, “This tactic is designed to silence and intimidate pro-Israel advocates at Harvard and campuses around the country.”

Former German FM: “The Bright Hope of a New Middle East Has Vanished”

Joschka Fischer writes: “Given Syria’s bloody civil war, the rise to power of Islamist forces through free elections, the ever-deepening political and economic crises in Egypt and Tunisia, increasing instability in Iraq, uncertainty about the future of Jordan and Lebanon, and the threat of war over Iran’s nuclear program, the bright hope of a new Middle East has vanished.”

Romanian historian publicly denies Holocaust
Vladimir Iliescu acknowledges ‘persecution’ took place in Romania, but says real atrocities took place elsewhere

Romania, an ally of Nazi Germany from 1940 to 1944, had a Jewish population of about 757,000 before World War II, when “extreme anti-Semitic tendencies escalated,” according to Yad Vashem. The Israeli Holocaust museum’s website says that Romanian and German troops murdered 380,000-400,000 Jews in areas controlled by Romania during the rule of Ion Antonescu.
The Romanian Academy has issued a statement distancing itself from Iliescu’s statement, which it said was not planned.

Mother says Toulouse killer was ‘good and kind’
French TV airs controversial documentary on Mohammed Merah after unsuccessful attempt by victims’ family to quash film

Mohammed Merah’s mother said in a first interview with French media that she did not understand what made her son kill three French soldiers and four Jews in Toulouse last year.
“I don’t understand any of it, he was a good and kind kid,” Zoulika Aziri said in an interview broadcast Wednesday on France 3 TV. “Then he changed all at once, I don’t know why. He’s dead and took many people with him.” She said her son “never mentioned jihad.” Aziri also denied reports by other relatives that “there was talk of jihad” in the family.

With Chavez gone, where to for Venezuelan Jews?
Most of the community emigrated during the late president’s term. Now, the country’s problems are compounded by political turmoil

For now, it’s unclear whether or for how long the anti-Jewish atmosphere Chavez allowed to take root in Venezuela will survive him.
But after 14 years of policies that prompted more than half of Venezuela’s Jews to pick up and leave — and with Venezuela’s economic and security problems now compounded by political turmoil — it’s hard to imagine very many of the Jewish emigres are hurrying back.

In Poland, a ‘breakthrough’ on Holocaust compensation
Warsaw, for first time, said willing to seriously discuss restitution

An official Israeli delegation to Poland believes it achieved a “breakthrough” in talks with Warsaw about possible compensation for private assets that belonged to Jews before the Holocaust, The Times of Israel has learned.
The five-member delegation, which included a former Israeli minister and was accompanied by a senior Israeli diplomat stationed in Warsaw, failed to reach an agreement with the Polish government. However, the Israelis said the Poles for the first time signaled readiness to engage seriously in a discussion about compensation and agreed on the need for further bilateral consultations.

Two runners disappear in marathon mystery
The Ethiopian women began Friday’s race but did not reach the finish line, police say, and haven’t been seen since

He said police were looking for them in both Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, and were considering various reasons for the disappearance. But it seemed likely the two runners used the sporting event as an opportunity to flee poverty in their home country and to stay in Israel, home to a large community of African migrants.

Qoros debuts new sedan with more in the pipeline

Qoros Auto Co Ltd, the new independent carmaker from China, made its public debut on Tuesday at the Geneva Motor Show by unveiling the first in a series of new models aimed at discerning young buyers in China and Europe.
The 50-50 joint venture established in 2007 by Chery Automobile, China's biggest automaker by sales, and Israel Corp, the largest holding company in its namesake country, is the only Chinese automaker at the show, after China's battery and car maker BYD Co Ltd exhibited its models at the event in 2010 and 2011.

Israeli Company Targeted by Boycotters Reports Huge Sales Increase

It has been a break out year for SodaStream, a fact that can be reflected in a 51% increase in full year revenue, to 436.3 million, reported by the company last month. The numbers were positive all-around in fact: fourth-quarter revenue increased 55% to $132.9 million, and the company sees 2013 revenue and adjusted net income improving by 25 percent, with half of the sales growth coming from the U.S.

Oren to Colbert: “No Country Has a Greater Interest Than Israel in Resolving the Iranian Nuclear Threat by Diplomatic Means”

Perhaps the most humorous moment came with the trademark Colbert non-sequitur moment when he asked out of the blue “So when are you going to bomb Iran?’ to which Oren replied, “No country has a greater interest than Israel in resolving the Iranian nuclear threat by diplomatic means.” Colbert responded that if Israel does decide to attack Iran that “the Colbert Nation is behind Israel on this one and if you do bomb Iran we are right behind you with just as many nuclear weapons as you admit to having.”

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Also:
US postpones award to honor Egyptian woman activist in light of anti-US, anti-Semitic tweets (h/t O)

The Obama administration is postponing an award for an Egyptian activist who rallied worldwide attention against forced “virginity tests” on female protesters because of anti-American and anti-Semitic comments discovered on her Twitter account.

The State Department announced earlier this week that Samira Ibrahim would be among 10 recipients of the International Women of Courage award presented by Secretary of State John Kerry and first lady Michelle Obama on Friday.

But State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said Thursday the U.S. would hold off on awarding Ibrahim while officials investigate the tweets, which include support for attacks against U.S. diplomatic installations and praise for a terrorist assault against Israeli citizens in Bulgaria.

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UN verifies that BBC reporter's son was killed by Hamas (updated)

The UN Human Rights Council released an advanced version of its report on Operation Pillar of Defense.

The report appears to be remarkably fair, especially for the notoriously anti-Israel UN Human Rights Council. When it discusses Gaza civilians that died, it is willing to entertain the possibility that there was a legitimate target in the area for most cases, something we had not seen before. It properly places caveats around its findings of alleged violations by Israel of international law:

In some cases, more information would be required to make a more specific assessment. Based on the information available to OHCHR, the IDF did not consistently uphold the basic principles of conduct of hostilities, namely, the principles of distinction, proportionality and precautions. Further, the effectiveness, sufficiency and adequacy of precautions taken remains questionable in several cases.

No such doubt exists for Hamas' violations:

Palestinian armed groups continuously violated international humanitarian law, by launching indiscriminate attacks on Israel and by attacking civilians, thereby disregarding the principle of distinction. The armed groups failed to take all feasible precautions in attacks, in particular by launching rockets from populated areas, which put the population at grave risk. Furthermore, several Palestinians were killed by rockets launched by the armed groups that fell short and landed in the Gaza Strip...

This is pretty astonishing.

One example given is notable.

The report states is that Omar Mishrawi, the son of BBC reporter Jihad Mishrawi, was apparently killed by a Hamas rocket, as I reported at the time. (I was the first to have noticed this, to the best of my knowledge.)

The UNHRC report says:

On 14 November, a woman, her 11-month-old infant, and an 18-year-old adult in Al-Zaitoun were killed by what appeared to be a Palestinian rocket that fell short of Israel.⁶⁹ In addition, OHCHR received reports related to an incident in which two civilians, including a child, were killed, and five persons, including three children, were injured, as a result of what appeared to be a Palestinian rocket that fell short and hit a house in Al-Quds Street, near Khilla Gas Station, Jabalya, on 16 November.

The first incident is the Mishrawi case; the second one is talking about Mahmoud Sadallah, which I also had reported at the time.

The footnote (69) says simply that the Misharawi case was monitored by the UN OHCHR, meaning that the UN itself investigated this case and believes that the attack came from a Hamas rocket, not Israel, contrary to how the BBC reported it (as well as the PCHR, HRW, the Daily Mail and pretty much everyone else.)

Remember, the BBC had a long follow-up report where Jon Donnison pretended to address the inconsistencies I had brought up, and he dismissed them with "Most likely is that Omar died in one of the twenty bombings that the Israeli military says made up its initial wave of attacks. Omar was not a terrorist."

While I would like to know the specific evidence that the OHCHR had that indicated that a Hamas rocket killed the baby Omar, the BBC's assumption that Israel must be guilty by default was clearly incorrect.

Will Jon Donnison and the BBC report this?

(h/t Gidon Shaviv)

UPDATE: Some people are pointing out inconsistencies between the UN report and the Mishrawi case. The UN is wrong in saying that the child's mother died; it was actually his aunt (Jihad's sister in law.) And another relative died from injuries about ten days later as Ma'an reported. There were no incidences in Beit Zaytoun that day that were even close to this (according to PCHR), so this is the same incident.

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Thursday Links Part 1

From Ian:

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Barry Rubin: Who Is the "Imperialist Tool" in the Middle East?

Of course, the debate today is so structured as to leave out the fact that local countries can also be imperialistic in that they seek to take over the entire region or most of it. The modern history of the Middle East has been characterized by a battle between Egyptian, Syrian, and Iraqi imperialism seeking to gobble up Lebanon, Jordan, Israel, the Palestinians, the Gulf monarchies, and each other. Today, the nationalist motives have simply been replaced by an Islamist-driven drive to gain hegemony in the region with Iran and Turkey added to the mix. There's a long-term dream of reestablishing a caliphate. But the more realistic goal is that of old-fashioned imperialism, hegemony, and creating a sphere of influence for the country and regime involved.

Greece to probe threats to turn immigrants ‘into soap’
Greek police are investigating the neo-Nazi Golden Dawn party after some of its members were filmed threatening to turn immigrants “into soap” and put them in “ovens.”

The investigation, announced Wednesday, was prompted by the broadcast Tuesday of a program on Britain’s Channel 4 News that followed Golden Dawn candidates during last year’s elections. In the program, one of the candidates, Alexandros Plomeratis, makes clear Holocaust references in threatening the many immigrants who live in Athens. “We are ready to turn on the ovens,” he says. “We will turn them into soap but we may get a rash.” Plomaritis, who was not elected to parliament, also threatened to “make lamps from their skins.”

Filipino peacekeepers nabbed by Syrian rebels near Israel border
Gunmen demand that regime remove all its soldiers from Syrian Golan Heights; accuse Assad, UN of ‘collaboration with Israel’

A video clip released by the rebels shows a number of gunmen standing alongside the UN vehicles, while their apparent leader announced his demands. Some of the United Nations employees can be seen inside the vehicles.
In a second video, the same rebel spokesman is seen accusing the UN, the Assad regime and Europe of “collaborating with Israel.”
“The Free Syrian army will remain here until we banish Bashar and his oppression,” one rebel is seen saying.

Norwegian MP concerned over Norway's "indirect" funding of Palestinian terrorism
A Norwegian MP has expressed his concern with Norway's "indirect" funding of Palestinian terrorism and called for a Parliamentary Scrutiny Committee

Gitmark went on to criticise former Foreign Minister Jonas Gahr Støre -- for defending Norway's contributions to the PA's budget and stating that the PA payments were social welfare to the families and not salaries -- before calling for a Parliamentary Scrutiny Committee to look into the affair:

Palestinians will face ‘consequences’ if they pursue Israel at the ICC, says Baird

Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird has told a powerful pro-Israel lobby that Palestinians will feel “consequences” from Canada if they pursue the Jewish state at the International Criminal Court.
Baird issued the warning just as the federal government considers whether to end hundreds of millions of dollars in Canadian humanitarian aid to the Palestinians when it expires at the end of this month.

PA Moves Ahead with Plans to Register Sites with UNESCO
PA forms a committee to prepare applications to register sites on UNESCO's world heritage list, including the Dead Sea.

Each ministry has been asked to cooperate with the UNESCO committee, and will prepare the files, he said.
"For example, the Ministry of Culture will present the Palestinian narrative to register it as intangible cultural heritage," while a different department would be charged to register the Dead Sea as a body of water, he said.

Fatah assails Hamas misogyny in aborted marathon

Gaza rulers’ refusal to allow women to participate in UN-organized race is unjust and un-Palestinian, PM Fayyad charges

US envoy walks out of nuke talks over Iran remark

The US ambassador to the United Nations nuclear watchdog stormed out of an agency meeting on Wednesday in protest when Iran's representative accused Israel of "genocide," diplomats said
Officials from Canada and Australia also left the closed-door meeting of the International Atomic Energy Agency's (IAEA) 35-nation governing board when Iran's Ali Asghar Soltanieh made his statement during a debate on Syria, they said.

'Shi'ite terror network targeting Israelis overseas'

Counterterrorism bureau warns ahead of Passover holiday that Iranian Quds Force, Hezbollah network plotting attacks.

Egyptian Court Orders Cancellation of Parliamentary Elections

Egypt's administrative court on Wednesday ordered the cancellation of controversial parliamentary elections scheduled for April 22, throwing the country deeper into political crisis.
AFP reported that President Mohammed Morsi and his Muslim Brotherhood both issued statements saying they would respect the court's decision, although it was not immediately clear whether the president would appeal.

Brains Behind Israel’s Iron Dome ‘Not Putting All the Eggs in One System’

Israel’s Iron Dome missile defense system intercepted nearly 400 Gaza rockets last November alone, with an 85 percent success rate, amid the Israel Defense Forces’ Operation Pillar of Defense. But the brains behind the system isn’t resting on his laurels.
“I’m realistic, so I’m not putting all the eggs in one system, [even though] it had much success,” IDF Brig. Gen. Dr. Danny Gold, who had the initial idea for the Iron Dome, said in an interview with JNS.org at the 2013 American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) conference. “I did my job, I developed many other systems. So [the Iron Dome] helped Israel to probably prevent a massive ground operation and war, but it’s not alone.”

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Reuters misses some context in boilerplate Gaza tunnel story

Reuters goes right for the "poor Gazan" meme:

Business was booming for Gaza brick-maker Yasser Qreqea, until neighboring Egypt shut down smuggling tunnels across its border that were funneling arms to militants in the territory and cement and other basic goods to everyone else.

Overnight the price of building materials soared in the Gaza Strip, hitting Qreqea's key customers and, industry sources said, slowing the construction of apartments, roads and houses across the enclave run by Hamas.

"Business is dead and we are the ones losing out," the businessman told Reuters in his factory in the densely-populated Zeitoun neighborhood of Gaza City.

Egypt said it started flooding and sealing the network of tunnels in February to cut a two-way flow of smuggled weapons that was destabilizing its border area in the Sinai peninsula, where separate groups of militants operate.

Cairo's decision also cut a lifeline to around 1.7 million Palestinians in Gaza, hit by a blockade on a wide range of goods imposed by Israel in 2007 after Hamas took power.

There are a couple of important facts that Reuters ignores or downplays.

First of all, that the tunnels are used to smuggle weapons. That's sort of important, isn't it?

Secondly, Egypt has promised to open Rafah for building materials so they can be transferred legally and (literally) above ground. There was actually one such shipment earlier this week. Too bad that Reuters' Gaza reporter doesn't seem to know this.

What seems to have happened is that Hamas is taxing the imports at exorbitant rates and that is one of the reasons construction prices have risen, not only the tunnel closures.

One other salient fact: The prices for building materials in Egypt itself have also  gone up significantly in recent weeks. Perhaps one of the reasons Egypt wanted to close the tunnels was to protect its own market for cement and fuel?

I don't know, but that is one of the things a real reporter should be finding out, instead of phoning in a generic story about poor illegal smugglers who have become rich from their illicit trade in goods and weapons.

One other part of the article that shows Reuters' bias:

The tunnels had been used to bypass the blockade and smuggle in all kinds of merchandise, including cars, livestock and fuel -- around 30 percent of all goods that reached the enclave, according to some estimates.

Today's TOI says:

The government in the Gaza Strip has decided that there are too many cars being imported into the Palestinian territory, and on Wednesday announced it had reduced the number of vehicles due to oversupply.

In February, “we imported 63 cars from Egypt and 242 from Israel, and that’s a small number,” Basel Deeb, head of imports at the Gazan transportation ministry, told the Palestinian news agency Ma’an. In previous months the number of vehicles transferred into the Strip was larger, he said.

People in Gaza were not ordering cars in an indication that there was no lack of private vehicles, Deeb said.

The poor car smugglers, left without a market!

(h/t Adam)

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"Visualizing Palestine" lies, claims Arabs banned from Israeli buses

Over the past few months, there has been an initiative - called "Visualizing Palestine" -  to push the Palestinian Arab narrative graphically.

Not surprisingly, these infographics can lie.

The lies in the graphics are harder to counter than lies in speeches and essays, because the nature of graphics is that they are visceral and engage the subconscious. As a result, it is very important to emphasize that these guys are, to put it bluntly, liars.

The latest example from them:

The truth is that Palestinian Arabs are not banned from any Israeli bus, period. Here is a press release from the State of Israel regarding this issue:

The Minister of Transport, National Infrastructures and Road Safety, Israel Katz, instructed the Ministry's Director General, Uzi Itzhaki, to ensure that Palestinians entering Israel are able to travel on all public transport in Israel, including all lines operating in Judea and Samaria.

The Minister of Transport directed the Ministry's Director General to ensure that all announcements regarding the new lines that began operations today, will be posted in both Hebrew and Arabic, and to ensure that the service will be unrestricted and equal for all populations. Itzhaki has also been instructed to closely follow operation of the new service and to take into account any changes that need to be made for improving the service for all public transport users.

The story was irresponsibly reported and then spread. And the haters at Visualizing Palestine jumped on board with their own lies, even though the initial stories made it clear that nobody was being banned, and, indeed, couldn't be under the law. As Haaretz noted in its own "segregated bus lines" story:

In response to the report, the Transportation Ministry said it "has not issued any instruction or prohibition that prevents Palestinian workers from riding the public bus lines in Israel or in Judea and Samaria. Furthermore, the Transportation Ministry is not authorized to prevent any passangers from riding those lines."

"The two new lines that will be run as of tomorrow (Monday) are intended to improve the services to Palestinian workers that enter Israel via the Eyal Crossing," the ministry's statement continued, adding that the new lines will replace the "pirate" driving services who have been transporting Palestinian workers "at exorbitant prices and in an irregular fashion."

Others have debunked the story more thoroughly; see for example CiFWatch. But there is no indication that VP will ever pull down that lying graphic.

Some lies are more pernicious than others, and lies that appear as professional graphics are among the worst lies of all.

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EoZ interviewed by Israel web magazine Mida

Mida, a fast-growing Hebrew Israeli web magazine, interviewed me when I was in Israel last month.

Its extensive story about me has been published today - as their top story!

Here's the introduction:

Revenge of the Elder of Ziyon: Interview with the combative blogger

He believes that American liberals cannot understand Israel; but working tirelessly he explains it to them; every day he reveals the high levels of hatred and anti-Semitism prevalent in the Arab world, but he believes that - by exposure to these critical stories - it is possible to "save the world". Interview with influential pro-Israeli blogger Elder of Ziyon

Posting an average of 10 items a day and with an impressive list of readers, the "Elder of Ziyon" is one of the most influential pro-Israeli bloggers in the world. Those who follow him see the systematic coverage of events that pass under the radar of Western media, as well as analytical skills and critical depth. When this is seasoned with a satirical sense and good old-fashioned Jewish pride, it creates a unique topical product. Elder visited two weeks ago (his full name is jealously guarded) in order to collect video footage on his blog and he also found time to chat with the Mida team.

Ironically, I didn't record my part of the interview I don't have the time now to translate it back! (Anyone who wants to take on that job is welcome.)  But it is a wide-ranging interview, and, I think, a pretty good one.

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Ha'aretz corrects yet another of its blood libels, five weeks late

In late January, Ha'aretz reported (from my post):

A government official has for the first time acknowledged the practice of injecting women of Ethiopian origin with the long-acting contraceptive Depo-Provera.

Health Ministry Director General Prof. Ron Gamzu has instructed the four health maintenance organizations to stop the practice as a matter of course.

The ministry and other state agencies had previously denied knowledge or responsibility for the practice, which was first reported five years ago.

Gamzu’s letter instructs all gynecologists in the HMOs "not to renew prescriptions for Depo-Provera for women of Ethiopian origin if for any reason there is concern that they might not understand the ramifications of the treatment.”

Today, Ha'aretz issued a correction, and rewrote the article:

This article, which was updated on March 6, 2013, reported on Health Ministry director-general Prof. Roni Gamzu's instruction to gynecologists not to renew prescriptions for Depo-Provera if there is any doubt that recipients did not understand the implications of the treatment. The original version failed to state that this instruction was issued "without taking a stand or determining facts about allegations that had been made," and referred to all women and not just women of Ethiopian origin.

My post, and others, had shown that Ha'aretz had twisted the facts in reporting the story originally. CAMERA/Presspectiva in particular pointed out the errors to Ha'aretz and is responsible for the correction.

I showed that it is likely that the Ethiopian women actually wanted the Depo-Provera, and it is a popular contraceptive in Ethiopia itself becuase it allows women to have control over their bodies without their husbands knowing. I also pointed out that it is unlikely that any woman who took it would admit that she did so voluntarily in an Israeli newspaper.

But this correction shows that things were worse - Ha'aretz purposefully misquoted and ignored a key part of the memo itself, that it used as its smoking gun!

Instead of the memo stating, as Ha'aretz originally wrote:

not to renew prescriptions for Depo-Provera for women of Ethiopian origin if for any reason there is concern that they might not understand the ramifications of the treatment.

it really said:

Without taking a stand or determining facts about allegations that were made, I would like to instruct, from now on, all gynecologists in the HMOs not to renew prescriptions for Depo-Provera for women of Ethiopian – or any other – origin, if there is the slightest doubt that they have not understood the implications of the treatment.

Ha'aretz properly re-wrote the article, but the damage has been done by their blood libel - just as it was for their previous libels, notably that the Israeli Finance Ministry admits "a situation of apartheid exists" in Israel, and that a poll showed that "Most Israeli Jews support an apartheid regime in Israel."

Perhaps Ha'aretz has a better correction policy than other newspapers, but its policies on reporting the news initially are nothing short of reprehensible. No fact checking, no editing, and virulently anti-Israel reporters are allowed to lie and purposefully twist facts with impunity. The pattern is unmistakable.

Each of these libels spread far and wide immediately in the mainstream media, not to mention the Arabic media. The corrections will never reach even a tiny fraction of the world audience that read, believed and internalized the initial lies.

One can only hope that the editors of major media outlets are taking notice and understand that any Ha'aretz article that makes anti-Israel claims is automatically suspect, and needs to be verified before it is repeated.

I am not optimistic, though.

(h/t CAMERA)

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Egypt making a power play to screw Israel in the Mediterranean?

There was a somewhat cryptic article in Egypt Independent today:

The Shura Council's legislative committee approved a draft law submitted Wednesday cancelling current maritime borders of an economic zone between Egypt and Cyprus.

The proposed bill was submitted by MP Khaled Abdel Qader Ouda, who said the agreement was signed by Cyprus and Israel in February 2003.

He said this invalidates the deal since Egypt had the right to be present at the signing, according to international agreements.

Ouda argues that the renegotiation could mean billions of dollars for Egypt.

The draft law calls for the creation of new borders surrounding the economic zone in the presence of Turkey as a third party.

Apparently, Ouda is referring to the Egypt/Cyprus EEZ agreement of 2003, which states:

If either of the two Parties is engaged in negotiations aimed at the delimitation of its exclusive economic zone with another State, that Party, before reaching a final agreement with the other State, shall notify and consult the other Party, if such delimitation is in connection with coordinates 1 or 8.

Egypt apparently is claiming that the 2010 Israel/Cyprus EEZ agreement is subject to Egypt's approval, and Egypt is (retroactively?) disapproving it.

Coordinate 8 in the Egypt/Cyprus agreement happens to be coordinate 12 in the Israel/Cyprus agreement,32º 53' 20" latitude and 32º 58' 20" longitude, seen here:

Lebanon has also challenged the Israel/Cyprus agreement. 

But if Egypt is trying to bring Turkey into this, to carve up the areas now assigned to Israel and Cyprus, it might really turn into a mess. 

This is worth watching.

(h/t JE)

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Storming Jews "performing Talmudic rituals" again! (video)

From Kuwait's Al Qabas:

Jewish extremists stormed the Al Aqsa Mosque in occupied Jerusalem this morning and performed Talmudic and Jewish rituals in the courtyards.

Local radio stations said that a number of Jewish extremists stormed Al-Aqsa Mosque under the protection and guard of the Israeli occupation forces to perform Talmudic ritual in patios at Sur Al-Aqsa Mosque.

Scuffles occurred between those stationed in Al-Aqsa Mosque and the occupation forces after the raid, injuring two of those stationed in the Mosque.

From the Al Aqsa Foundation site we can see a video of exactly how provocative those "Jewish extremists" are, as they peacefully walk around while being screamed at by a crowd of Muslim women. Those violent "Israeli occupation forces" are politely shooing them away from the peaceful Jews.

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Wednesday Links Part 2

From Ian:

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Dutch Youngsters on TV: "Too Bad Not All Jews Were Killed"
"What would happen if the word Muslim were substituted for Jew?" asked a writer about the hate-filled video that elicited only apathy.

Arutz Sheva was sent this shocking video of a broadcast on the Dutch Nederland 2 station that took place on the 17th of February. The interviewer is a volunteer youth worker Mehmet Sahin who tries to reeducate Turkish youngsters in Arnhem, a major city in the eastern part of the Netherlands.
For over a week there was hardly any reaction in the Netherlands. Nine days later, one well-known columnist, Elma Drayer, published an article in the Dutch daily Trouw in which she wrote how scandalous it was that there had been no reaction.
She wrote that if Dutch youngsters had said on television that it would have been a good thing had all Muslims been slaughtered, including little babies, there would have been massive reactions about how horrible this was.

U.N. seeks more than $10 billion in humanitarian aid

The United Nations and humanitarian agencies are seeking $10.4 billion in aid to assist millions of people in Syria and 23 other countries, a top U.N. official said in Brazil on Tuesday.
“We and our humanitarian partners are seeking $10.4 billion this year to help more than 57 million people in 24 countries with some of the world’s most pressing crises,” Valerie Amos, the visiting U.N. emergency relief coordinator, said.

U.S. urges ban on drunk diplomats at UN budget debates

The United States called on Monday for a ban on drunk diplomats at budget debates at the United Nations.
“We make the modest proposal that the negotiating rooms should in future be an inebriation-free zone,” Joseph Torsella, deputy U.S. ambassador to the United Nations for management and reform, told the General Assembly’s budget committee.

UN Watch: Michael Coren & Hillel Neuer - The U.N. Human Rights Council



Syrian refugees top 1 million, UN says
Number of displaced civilians from Syrian civil war swells, straining economies of host countries

The UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Antonio Guterres, said in a statement released in Geneva that the figure is based on reports from his agency’s field offices in neighboring countries that have provided refuge for Syrians escaping the civil war.
“With a million people in flight, millions more displaced internally, and thousands of people continuing to cross the border every day, Syria is spiraling towards full-scale disaster,” Guterres said.

Al-Qaeda gunmen study IDF patrols on Israeli-Syrian border

Terror groups filmed operating openly just across the fence, weapons in hand
Members of the al-Furqan group — affiliated with the global al-Qaeda organization which has acted in Yemen and Iraq — were filmed close to Israel’s border, out in the open, in footage screened by Israel’s Channel 10 on Tuesday night.
In a number of videos uploaded to the internet, the fighters can also be seen holding various munitions, including old anti-tank rockets and heavy machine guns.

Pres. of Ukrainian Jewish Congress Targeted in Car Bombing
The president of the Ukrainian Jewish Congress narrowly escaped death after he was targeted in bombing attempt in central Kiev.

Vadim Rabinovich, a businessman and president of the All-Ukrainian Jewish Congress, said a bomb was hurled at his car as it pulled out from an office courtyard.

Jews hit Malmö streets to counter anti-Semitism

The efforts on the part of Malmö's Jewish leaders appear to be bearing fruit with a young Malmö Muslim, Siavosh Derakhti, who was given an award last autumn by the Swedish Committee Against Anti-Semitism.
Derakhti, a 21-year-old son of Iranian immigrants who has lived in Malmö his entire life, was recognized for setting up the organization Young Muslims Against Anti-Semitism to educate students about the Holocaust.
"Jews in Malmö are subjected to everything from threats to harassment and it's our duty as Swedish citizens and residents of Malmö to react and stand up for human rights," Derakhti wrote in a recent opinion article in the local Sydsvenskan newspaper.
Kippah walks through central Malmö are now a regular occurrence and local Jews appear to be more willing to show their beliefs than before the wave of anti-Semitic incidents.

Peres Honors Belgians Who Saved Jews During the Holocaust

President Shimon Peres kicks off a European tour with a homage to 22 Belgians honored for saving Jews during the Holocaust.
Their names are to be added to 1,650 other Belgians named "Righteous Among The Nations," the highest distinction awarded by Israel for wartime bravery towards Jews in peril.

Rita rocks the UN

Iranian-born Israeli diva Rita performed before UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and other international dignitaries Tuesday at the UN General Assembly Hall in a first-of-its-kind event organized by the Israeli Mission to the UN.
Rita and her nine-piece band performed in Hebrew, English and Persian before a full house that included President of the UN General Assembly Vuk Jeremic, ambassadors, diplomats, and leaders of the US Jewish and Iranian communities.

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James Baker: The problem isn't that Hamas is terrorist, it is that we are calling Hamas 'terrorist'

Some things are so stupid, it takes a former diplomat to state them:

One solution to promote peace between Palestinians and Israelis is to have non-Hamas members from the Gaza Strip negotiating peace, a former U.S. official told Al Arabiya.

“Israel and the United States will not work with Hamas because it is seen to be a terrorist organization,” James Baker, who served as the Chief of Staff in the final year of the administration of President George H.W. Bush said.

Baker, also the Secretary of State during H. W. Bush’s era, cited strategies used in the Madrid Conference in 1991, where Palestinians who were not members of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) – listed as a terrorist organization by Washington and Tel Aviv at the time – to negotiate peace with the Israelis.

“To promote peace we used the construct of Palestinians from within the territories because we couldn’t work with the PLO,” he said.

However, in spite of Israel, the PLO brought an unofficial “advisory delegation,” to act as liaison with the Palestinian representatives.

So, Baker has advised finding Palestinians from Gaza, not members of Hamas to represent people from the enclave.

Hamas, an Islamist movement, who doesn’t recognize the Jewish state yet, has functioned as the de facto ruler of Gaza from 2007.

Hamas' targeting civilians and implacable stated desire to eradicate Israel isn't the problem. No, the problem is that the West and Israel stupidly fail to ignore Hamas' support for terror and insistence that Israel be destroyed.

Smart people like Baker, on the other hand, know that the more Hamas insists on - and acts upon - destroying the Jewish state, the more important it is to make them part of the "peace process."

The full interview with Al Arabiya hasn't yet aired, so we will have to wait if more examples of Baker's pure genius will be evident.

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EoZNews Video: The Bedouin problem in the Negev

While I was in Israel last month I was given a tour of the Negev by Regavim, an NGO that concentrates on the legal use of land in Israel.

A major concern is how the Bedouin have been illegally building villages throughout the entire Negev. This is not a small problem - it is an epidemic.

The problem is not all the Bedouins' fault, either. Regavim is very sympathetic to how badly they were treated by Israel in the decades following 1948. But if nothing is done now, the problem will only get worse.

Israel has tried to deal with the issue by giving them land, but as this video shows, that has not worked. The Bedouin are recklessly ignoring Israeli law and building wherever they want. These are not ancient villages but scattershot buildings all being built today on stolen land - on literally thousands of settlements.

What is also clear is that the people who say that Israel must simply make these buildings legal have no idea what they are talking about. No responsible state should cave in to what is simply theft. And many of these buildings start as mere shacks, but when nothing is done they become more permanent with cinder blocks and eventually fully functional housing.

But Israel does have to offer an alternative, and that will cost serious money.

The current state cannot continue.

Hopefully, this video will illustrate the problem a little better.

  

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Wednesday Links Part 1

From Ian:

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Arab Students Chase British Envoy From Ramallah College

Scores of violent Arab students forced the British consul general to make a hasty departure from a university in Ramallah on Tuesday, according to witness reports.
Consul General Sir Vincent Fean had travelled to Bir Zeit University near Ramallah to deliver a lecture on Britain's policy in the Middle East and the prospects for peace but was turned away by vehement Arab demonstrators, the Ma’an news agency reported.

The protesters also held up Palestinian Authority flags and banners in English and Arabic, one of which read: "I am a refugee because of Balfour" in reference to Britain's publication in 1917 of the Balfour Declaration, which called for the establishment of a national home for the Jewish people in the Land of Israel.

PA nabs 66 Hamas supporters as unity talks fail By Khaled Abu Toameh
Hamas announces that the PA has arrested 66 of its supporters in W. Bank including 32 former prisoners held by Israel.

In a report, Hamas said that among those arrested were 32 former prisoners [held by Israel], three university students, a journalist and a teacher.
The report said that PA security forces also summoned another 38 Hamas supporters and leaders for interrogation.
Ten Hamas supporters were ordered remanded into custody despite court decisions to release them, the report said.

CIF Watch: Sunset over Gaza: A story about Palestinian misogyny Harriet Sherwood won’t report

While every perceived violation of Palestinian human rights by the Israeli government is reported, the routine disregard for the basic human rights of Palestinian women, gays and minorities (and Palestinian journalists) by Palestinian leaders is rarely reported.
Additionally, when Palestinians aren’t portrayed as victims, as such, they are idealized – their culture and land is idealized and romanticized.

Judge Clears Path for Trial Against French Bank’s Hamas Accounts

A leading European bank faces trial in New York later this year after a federal judge found there is sufficient evidence it knew the funds were being used to support a Palestinian terrorist group.
U.S. District Judge Dora Irizarry denied French banking giant Credit Lyonnais SA‘s motion for summary judgment last Thursday, saying “there is a genuine issue” about the bank’s behavior with the accounts in question.

Gaza smugglers keep their heads above water
Egyptian military admits that its strategy of flooding tunnels beneath the border has not worked as well as expected

Egyptian military sources said they will step up operations against the tunnels as they have as yet been unsuccessful, according to a report by Israel Radio on Wednesday which quoted the Palestinian Ma’an news agency.
The source said that Egyptian army engineering units are preparing to bring heavy equipment to bear on the tunnels. The engineering units will be provided with special military protection as they work to destroy the passages in order to prevent attacks by smugglers hoping to save the underground infrastructure.

Thousands of Christians flee religious persecution in Egypt

Life for Christians under the government of Mohammed Morsi in Egypt has become difficult. Reports are emerging that up to 100,000 Christians have left Egypt since the Muslim Brotherhood came to power. Some of those have arrived in Moscow. VoR’s Brendan Cole went there to investigate.

Ahmadinejad claims Chavez fell "martyr" to "suspect illness"
Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has backed claims made by the Venezuelan Vice President that Chavez was somehow 'attacked' by his enemies

Earlier, Nicolas Maduro (Chavez's heir apparent) had boldly stated: “We have not a single doubt and at the proper moment we will convene a medical board to confirm that Chavez was attacked," likening Chavez’s case with that of Palestinian Liberation Organization leader Yasser Arafat, whose death, Maduro said, was caused by poisoning by the Israelis.
The relationship between Ahmadinejad's Iran and Chavez's Venezuela had grown steadily over recent years, with both leaders sharing virulent anti-American, anti-Israeli, and anti-Jewish sentiments. Billions of dollars in investment agreements have been signed between the states.

Bundeswehr 'bullied' by Turkish troops

German troops deployed on the Turkish-Syrian border are being badly treated by their Turkish hosts and NATO partners, a government report said over the weekend.
A majority of the 400 German troops sent to Turkey in December as part of a NATO mission deploying Patriot anti-aircraft missiles to defend the Syrian border said Turkish soldiers did not treat them as welcome guests and were “rarely helpful,” wrote Der Spiegel magazine on Saturday.
Not only that, but the soldiers often felt they were being persecuted by the Turkish army on purpose, according to a report presented to parliament on Friday.

Report: Turkish Diplomats Say Shipment of Free Navy Vessels from U.S. Only Halted Temporarily

According to Turkish diplomatic sources the bill that would have allowed for the delivery of the ships, which are to be donated, failed to be ratified by the Senate before the end of the legislative term on Jan. 3rd because “Debates on the issue of the fiscal cliff kept the House of Representatives occupied for a long time. Thus, when the bill came to the Senate, there was a time pressure.”

Turkey appoints ambassador to ‘Palestine’
One-time close ally of Israel gives consul-general in Ramallah an upgrade

Allscripts acquires dbMotion for $235 million
Israel’s dbMotion is considered a pioneer in computerized healthcare information solutions.

Founded in 2004, dbMotion provides a strategic platform for care coordination and population health management that integrates discrete patient data from diverse care settings, regardless of IT supplier, into a single patient record. dbMotion provides a longitudinal clinical data repository with semantically normalized patient data, point of care tools, a physician portal, population tools and an analytics gateway. This reduces the cost of care delivery and enables better physician-to-physician care coordination.

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