Elder Of Ziyon - Israel News

Sunday, June 23, 2013

Obligatory "supermoon" photo

It's not easy photographing the moon; here is the best I could do - using photo mode on a video camera.

Hamas says it will take nine years to destroy Israel

Hamas interior minister Fathi Hammmad, speaking to Egyptian media, said that Hamas will help achieve the destruction of Israel in nine years:

"The destruction will be in phases, and Egypt will also play a significant role in the destruction of the Zionist entity, and will then be an Islamic caliphate," Hammad said.

Hammad indicated that "Palestine" and all the other Islamist countries will combine into the new caliphate.

The implication that such a caliphate is impossible while Israel exists.

Which is as good a reason as any for the West to support Israel wholeheartedly.

While we might laugh at the idea of Israel being destroyed in nine years, are any Western leaders setting up a strategy to destroy Islamist terror groups in any timeframe?

I am afraid that for all the technical and moral superiority of the West, the Islamists have a strategy - and we simply don't. We remain in reactive mode without a clear vision of how to defeat the enemy, and often not even to recognize it as the enemy.

Hamas' plan, shared with the PLO, is not mentioned here but obvious based on the short history of Palestinian Arab nationalism. It is to take Israel apart piece by piece. Starting with Judea and Samaria and concentrating on Jerusalem, a city that was ignored by most Muslims before 1920, the plan is to take away Israel's Jewish soul and then to destroy it demographically, all the while delegitimizing the very idea of a Jewish state and of a Jewish people. They have enough antisemites and self-hating Jews to partner with to push this plan (or specific parts of it.)

Where is the plan to destroy Hamas?

Ridiculous article blames Israel for "Gaza's cultural deficit"

In Al Monitor, Rana Baker writes a mishmash of pseudo-facts all meant to blame Israel for Gaza's lack of culture. Israel restricts movement in its own territory between Gaza and the West Bank, Israel bombed the Islamic University of Gaza in 2008, and a bunch of other cherry-picked half-truths are thrown together to make it appear like Israel has a deliberate policy against Gaza culture, and Hamas is free and clear.

Here is the comment I wrote there:

What a joke this article is.

3 examples will suffice:

Baker pretends that the Islamic University of Gaza is a purely academic institution, with nothing to do with terror. Yet in 2007 it was reported that not only was Gilad Shalit held there for several months, and not only was master Hamas bombmaker Yahya Ayyash hiding there as well, but Fatah raided the campus and found 2,000 AK-47 assault rifles, hundreds of RPG launchers and massive amounts of ammunition. Oh, and a tunnel leading to Gaza's police station, under Fatah control at the time.

Israel's bombing it in 2008 had nothing to do with "limiting culture" and everything to do with limiting terror.

The second example is how quickly Baker sweeps Egypt's role in the Gaza closure.Blink and you'll miss it: "Egypt's policy of restricting travel for men under 40..." Oh, you mean that Egypt borders Gaza as well? And it limits people entering and leaving? Then why is 99% of this article about Israel? How much cultural exchange is allowed between Gaza and Egypt? If the answer is "very little" then perhaps Israel isn't the problem, is it?

Finally, Baker's characterization of the PalFest as an example of Israel blocking Gaza culture is especially rich. Because last year's PalFest in Gaza was forced to move, mid-festival, to Cairo after Hamas police shut it down! Afterwards, participants (quoted in Al Ahram) noted how Hamas is the major reason Gaza is a cultural wasteland.

Not Israel, not Egypt - Hamas.

Professor of English Literature Sahar El-Mougy said that there’s a deplorable condition of cultural hunger. There aren’t even cinemas, libraries, or shops that sell books on the arts, philosophy or literature. The only available books are those on Islamic Sharia (Islamic jurisprudence) and Fiqh (thinking).

'There’s a conspiracy against the Palestinian character, to destroy its beauty. Hamas is erasing Palestinian culture, replacing it with an extremist version of Islam. They don’t even allow men and women to be in the same place!' El-Mougy objected.

'But through all this, and despite the security and intelligence, who we saw everywhere in Gaza, students we met have the spirit of resistance — not against Israel this time, but against the repressive practices of Hamas.'

This article is nothing but propaganda, and Al Monitor does not help its own reputation by publishing it.

(h/t Josh)

6/22 Links: The Australian Greens Party Ship of Hate, PA PM Unresigns

From Ian:

The Australian Newspaper Editorial: All aboard the ship of fools

Australia's most notorious Holocaust denier was invited by a NSW Greens MP to join a boat trip on Sydney Harbour last month to raise funds for Gaza.
Greens MLC David Shoebridge invited Fredrick Toben - who served prison time for Holocaust denial in Germany in the 1990s and in Australia last decade for contempt of court after breaching an order to refrain from publishing material on his website vilifying Jews - to the NSW Parliamentary Friends of Palestine event.

THE HATE BOAT: Greensparty wanted to go “solidarity” sailing with Nazi holocaust denier

The notorious New South Wales branch of the Greensparty has once again embroiled the party in scandal, following revelations in The Australian that it has forged close ties with the nation’s most infamous Holocaust denier and Nazi, Fredrick Töben.
They even invited him to sail in solidarity to raise funds for Gaza, in protest at Israel’s attempts to stop the flow of weapons and equipment used by terrorists there against Israeli civilians and enemies of the Hamas-led regime there.

CAMERA: Time for 60 Minutes and Jeff Fager to Correct Bethlehem Falsehood

Leaders in Turkey, Egypt and Iran face new 'people power'

Middle Eastern politics, once the exclusive lot of generalissimos, kinglings, aristocrats and clerics, is being wrested by the people with growing aggressiveness.
This is not quite the free, integrated, tolerant and business-minded “New Middle East” that President Shimon Peres prophesied two decades ago, but it is one where governments are increasingly compelled to look inward, listen to the public, dialogue with adversaries and focus on delivering prosperity, mobility, hope and respect. The more this trend will develop, the more Middle Eastern leaders will deal with domestic policy and the more they will lose interest in foreign affairs.

‘Palestinian PM withdraws resignation a day after quitting’

Hamdallah was said to have originally resigned due to “differences over his authorities.” An unnamed Palestinian government spokesman told the website of independent daily Al-Quds that Hamdallah resigned after “his deputies overstepped their authorities.”
Abbas gave Hamdallah two deputies, one for political and one for economic affairs, apparently to make up for his political inexperience.

US Congressmen call for renewed EU push to blacklist Hezbollah

In a statement to The Jerusalem Post, Congressman Eliot Engel (NY-16) said he was "very disappointed" that some countries in the EU "continue to believe that Hezbollah is not a terrorist organization."
"EU-US cooperation on combating global terrorism will continue to face unnecessary obstacles until Hezbollah is properly labeled a terrorist organization, in its entirety," the congressman said. "Nonetheless, I applaud the efforts of the UK, France and Germany, and am confident that this situation will change in the future."

Muslim Brotherhood Targeting Journalists as Anti-Government Protests Near

Egypt’s defence and interior ministers have turned down a proposal by President Mohamed Morsi to prepare security forces for a possible declaration of a state of emergency should planned 30 June anti-government demonstrations turn violent, government sources told Ahram Online on Thursday.

Islamic Preacher: Protesting Against Morsi is a 'Rebellion'

A radical Islamic preacher has warned that participation in the protests scheduled for June 30 against Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi is forbidden, the Egyptian-based Al Bawaba reports.
The preacher, Wagdy Ghoneim, reasoned his warning in the fact that Morsi is a legitimately elected president. Those who will join the protests, he warned, are “disbelievers” because the people should obey those in charge of their affairs.

Egyptian activists angry over US envoy's comments

The outrage mounted after Ambassador Anne Patterson said in a speech earlier this week that she is "deeply skeptical" that protests will be fruitful and defended U.S. relations with Morsi's Muslim Brotherhood as necessary because the group is part of the democratically elected Egyptian government.

U.S. has secretly provided arms training to Syria rebels since 2012

The covert U.S. training at bases in Jordan and Turkey, along with Obama's decision this month to supply arms and ammunition to the rebels, has raised hope among the beleaguered Syrian opposition that Washington ultimately will provide heavier weapons as well. So far, the rebels say they lack the weapons they need to regain the offensive in the country's bitter civil war.

Germany-Turkey diplomatic dispute intensifies, both sides summon envoys

Merkel on Monday criticized the crackdown by security forces as “much too strong.” The chancellor also has long been skeptical of Turkey’s ambitions to join the European Union; her coalition government supports continuing membership talks, but this week blocked a decision to move forward the negotiations.

Muslim Lawyers Association opposed to Obama visit

"We will ask the court to review the decision neither to investigate or prosecute and to order them to commence a full investigation in terms of the Rome Statute," MLA attorney Yousha Tayob said.
The MLA said it submitted a complaint to the national director of public prosecutions and the SA Police Service, calling for Obama to be "investigated, charged, arrested, and tried in a South African court for war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide".

Memorial to Warsaw Ghetto uprising is vandalized

The entrance to a memorial for the leader of the Warsaw Ghetto uprising was vandalized.
The words “Jude Raus,” meaning “Jews Out,” were discovered Wednesday at the Anielewicz Mound in Warsaw, a monument to commander Mordechai Anielewicz and his fighters.

A New Interactive Map of the Vilna Ghetto Asks: What Good Is History if It Isn’t Told?

reVILNA, a just-launched digital mapping project of the Vilna Ghetto, is the response: a virtual reclamation of the space. Using filters and a search function, visitors to the site can explore the ghetto on their own, or follow built-in storylines—sort of like virtual tours—which are either chronological or topical in nature and include resistance, health, education, government, art and culture, and more. There are more than 200 points (and counting), all painstakingly organized, paired with more than 150 photographs culled from archives around the world.

Greek Cyprus Signs Energy Deal With Israel in Defiance of Turkey

The Greek Cypriot cabinet defied Turkey earlier this week, approving plans to sign a deal with a US-Israeli partnership to build a liquefied natural gas plant on the island to exploit untapped energy riches, AFP reported Friday.
Turkey has objected to the plan, saying the resources should be divided between two sides of the separated island.

Egyptian anti-Israel postage stamps

(Fourth of a series of articles about Arab anti-Israel stamps.)

Egypt has published many, many anti-Israel stamps.

A great number of them were centered around Palestine refugees:

World Refugee Year, 1960. Arabs pointing to map of "Palestine"

1961 "Palestine Day"

1968

The 1970 stamp glamorized PLO terror attacks:

1970

The 1972 stamp added a religious dimension, showing an image of the Dome of the Rock:

1972

The 1973 stamp seemed to be an early example of the "starving refugee" meme:

1973

The 1976 and 1977 stamps made the religious theme a bit more explicit, as the stylized "refugees" stare at the Dome of the Rock:

By 2000, the link with Islam was complete with a photo of the Al Aqsa Mosque along with the PLO flag:

In 1957, Egypt celebrated Israel's giving Gaza back after the 1956 war, with this Egyptian stamp overstruck in Gaza with the word "Palestine:"

In 1962, Egypt issued a stamp to commemorate the fifth anniversary of its re-occupation of Gaza. Even then, Egypt held to the fiction that Gaza was sort-of independent "Palestine" while still part of the "Arab nation."

Egypt, along with most other Arab League countries, issued a commemoration of Deir Yassin in 1965 - all the stamps were used an identical graphic:

This stamp was apparently released right after the Six Day War, but it appears it was designed beforehand to show Arab solidarity for "the defense of Palestine." Note that this time, the map is only of ISrael, not British Mandate Palestine, making it clear what the end goal was:

This 1970 stamp commemorates the supposed bombing by Israel of a civilian metal factory in Abu Zabbaiin 1970.

They also had one (not pictured) about Israel's attack on a Libya commercial plane that veered into Israel and refused to answer any signals in 1973.

Egypt released many stamps commemorating the Yom Kippur War. There was one literally every year for the first 15 years after the war, and every five years afterwards.

1973. "Spark of Liberation" implies that it would be followed by more.

The 1980 stamp, like some others, employs "peace doves" to commemorate a sneak attack war.

1980

1984

1985

1986

Of course, Egypt also commemorated the first intifada in 1988::

6/21 Links Part 2: Latma interviews the new moderate Iranian President.

From Ian:

LATMA: Latma interviews the new moderate Iranian President and celebrates Shimon Peres

Vice-Chair of UN Rights Panel Works for Saudi Gov’t, Defends Misogyny

What the UN forgot to mention today is that the Vice-Chair of the committee accusing Israel of violating children’s rights works for the Saudi government and has a despicable record of apologetics for her country’s misogyny.
About half the members of the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child come from non-democracies, many of whom take unfriendly or hostile positions against Israel at the UN, including Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Tunisia, Egypt, Malaysia, Sri Lanka and Russia.
On professional human rights expertise, Mrs. Al-Shehail has a shameful record of telling lies to protect Saudi Arabia’s gross and systematic violations of women’s rights.

New Study Concludes that ‘Italian Schindler’ Actually Helped Murder Jews During the Holocaust

Giovanni Palatucci, a wartime police official, has been honored by Israel’s Holocaust memorial Yad Vashem as one of the Righteous Among the Nations and by the Pope, but the Centro Primo Levi at the Center for Jewish Studies in New York stated that a research panel of more than a dozen scholars has concluded that for six years, Palatucci was “a willing executor of the racial legislation and — after taking the oath to Mussolini’s Social Republic, collaborated with the Nazis.”
The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum has responded by removing an exhibition celebrating Palatucci and an official at Yad Vashem told the Times they had “commenced the process of thoroughly examining the documents.”

MK Ohayon: UN 'Refugee Day' for Jews From Arab Lands, Too

As the United Nations urges countries to do more to help refugees – and castigates countries that create the refugees who are unable to live in their home countries – on World Refugee Day, commemorated Thursday, MK Shimon Ohayon (Yisrael Beytenu) had a message for the UN: Don't forget the Jewish refugees from Arab lands, far more numerous than the much-worried over Arab refugees who fled the Land of Israel before Israel's establishment in 1948.
While those Arabs for the most part left their homes voluntarily, on the recommendation of Egypt, Transjordan (now Jordan(, Syria and the other four Arab countries that declared war on the nascent state – in order to “clear a path” for the “victorious Arab armies” as they “slaughtered the Jews” - the Jewish refugees from Arab countries were thrown out of the countries they and their families had lived in for hundreds of years, just for the crime of being Jewish, and thus suspected Zionists.

N. Korean camp survivor urges world’s attention

To date, the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva has convened 19 special sessions, none on North Korea. Israel has been the subject of six — more than the Syrian civil war, in which 90,000 people are believed to have died, or the genocide in Darfur, which has claimed the lives of hundreds of thousands, according to some estimates.
“Shin Dong-hyuk doesn’t touch on our agenda, he is our agenda,” said Hillel Neuer, the director of UN Watch, “drawing attention to major human rights abuses that do not receive the attention they merit.”

North Korea Officials Threaten to Kill Source of Mein Kampf Story Leak, Call Culprit ‘Human Scum’

Officials in Pyongyang also described the defector’s report as a “thrice-cursed crime” which was aimed at belittling Kim, The Daily Mail reports.
“We are determined to take substantial measures to physically remove despicable human scum who are committing treasons,” the state-run Korean Central News Agency said.

Turkish Reporters Suggest Conspiracy Theory

Turkish reporters loyal to Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan have claimed that the anti-government protests currently gripping the nation have been carefully orchestrated and planned by prominent Jewish officials and a conservative Washington, D.C., think tank.

Israelis find way to preserve fertility after chemotherapy

In a study published in Science Translational Medicine (published by the American Association for the Advancement of Science), the authors describe how adding an Israeli-synthesized compound, AS101, to the chemotherapy regime successfully prevented infertility.

Chinese Fund to offer scholarships to Chinese students at Technion

The Hanqing International Education Foundation agreed this week to offer $8 million in scholarships to Chinese students at the Technion- Israel Institute of Technology.
The agreement, which is valid for 20 years, was signed in the presence of Haifa Mayor Yona Yahav, Technion president Peretz Lavie, donor Chinese businessman Zhao Hanqing and Handan Mayor Hui Jian, from the donor’s birthplace.

Yuri Foreman Film Earns Plaudits at Cannes Film Festival (VIDEO)

A short film highlighting the career of Jewish boxer Yuri Foreman screened at the prestigious Cannes Lion International Festival of Creativity this past week.
The Boxer, a commercial collaboration between Chevrolet and MOFILM, tells the story of “an immigrant boxer who never gave up on his dream and eventually became a world champion,” according to the video’s YouTube page.

‘Hostages’ is latest sabra TV export

Time for another first in the Israel-US small screen relationship.
“Hostages,” the latest Israeli pilot to get purchased by an American television station, will air in the US before it gets seen in Israel.

Cisco CEO: Super-fast Internet will make Israel ‘test case’ for digital world

A new, super-fast fiber-optic system to be installed across Israel will turn the country into the world’s first digital state and serve as a test case for the world, Cisco CEO John Chambers said.
The cable system, based on technology developed by Cisco, will offer speeds several magnitudes faster than anything the country has seen before, and will link up nearly all facets of the state into a revolutionary network.

James Gandolfini's Israeli Ad

In the outpouring of obituaries and appreciations of actor James Gandolfini, who died yesterday at age 51, there’s been a tendency to confuse the man with his most famous character, Tony Soprano.
Here, for example, he appears basically as Tony Soprano, in an ad for the Israeli satellite channel YES. So here’s to you, James Gandolfini.

Something new to boycott: Israeli company to market generic Viagra

From Globes::

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. (NYSE: TEVA; TASE: TEVA) will soon launch a generic version of Pfizer Inc.'s Viagra in the UK and other European countries, sources inform "Globes." The impotence treatment is one of the world's bestselling drugs. Pfizer's Viagra sales reached $2 billion in 2012, half of this in the US.

In the UK and other countries Viagra's patent expires this weekend, allowing Teva (and other generic manufacturers) to launch a generic version. Teva has confirmed that it plans launching a generic version called Sildenafil in the European countries where the patent expires.

In the US, Teva has been prevented from launching a generic version of Viagra by a court ruling that the patent is valid until 2020. However, Teva did launch a generic version in Canada several months ago following a positive ruling after five years of legal proceedings.

According to reports in the UK, in 2012 alone, 2.3 million prescriptions were written for the drug, costing the National Health Service £40 million. The price of the drug will be reduced from £10 to £1 when generic versions are launched.

This will give the Palestinian Arabs more potential conspiracy theories. Remember sex gum?

Then again, Hamas has more than a passing familiarity with Viagra.

Poor Gazans will now have a legal way of getting the impotence drugs they crave so much.

The market for this is obviously only going to grow.

(h/t NotAntiSemitic)

Saudis committing to beat the Shiites in Syria

A very interesting analysis by Michael Weiss in Now Lebanon:

Last Friday, King Abdullah cut short his summer vacation in Morocco and flew back to Riyadh not only to meet with his national security advisors but to coordinate a new strategy for winning the war in Syria, one that encompasses a unified regional bloc of Sunni-majority powers now ranged against Iran, Hezbollah, and the Assad regime. The Wahhabi kingdom has exhausted its patience with miscarried attempts to resolve the Syria crisis through diplomacy and it will not wait to see the coming battle in Aleppo play out before assuming control of the Syrian rebellion. State-backed regional efforts to bolster moderate Free Syrian Army elements will thus be joined with the fetid call to jihad emanating from clerical quarters in Cairo, Doha, Mecca, and beyond. The mullahs have only themselves to blame. “Nasrallah fucked up,” one well-connected Syrian source told me recently. “He awakened the Sunni giant. The Saudis took Hezbollah’s invasion of Qusayr personally.”

Although long in coming, and evidenced in the recent contretemps between Hamas and Hezbollah in Lebanon and Syria, this grand realignment has been unmistakably solidified in the last week. A day after the Saudi king returned to Riyadh, Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi severed all diplomatic ties with Damascus and called for a no-fly zone in Syria, leaving no mystery as to reason behind this decision. “Hezbollah must leave Syria – these are serious words,” the Islamist president said. “There is no space or place for Hezbollah in Syria.”

Then, on Monday, June 17, it was Jordanian King Abdullah’s turn to strike a minatory, albeit more nationalistic, note. Ostensibly addressing cadets at a graduation ceremony at Mutah Military Academy, the Hashemite monarch was in fact speaking to Barack Obama and Bashar al-Assad: “If the world does not mobilize or help us in the issue [of Syria] as it should, or if this matter forms a danger to our country, we are able at any moment to take measures that will protect our land and the interests of our people.”

...According to Elizabeth O’Bagy, the policy director at the Syrian Emergency Task Force and a senior research analyst at the Institute for the Study of War, the Saudis had a closed-door meeting with Gen. Salim Idris, the head of the Free Syrian Army’s Supreme Military Command, a few days ago, at which they offered to do “whatever it takes” to help Idris defeat Assad and his growing army of Shiite-Alawi sectarian militias. Though, this being a Saudi promise, “whatever it takes” can still be defined relatively: the discussion was limited to weapons, more resources and logistical support, O’Bagy said, though some of the hardware has already begun to materialize.

One unnamed Gulf source cited by Reuters has claimed that the Saudis have begun running shoulder-launched anti-aircraft missiles (MANPADs) into Syria. Furthermore, at least 50 “Konkurs,” Russian-made, wire-guided anti-tank missiles, have also turned up in Aleppo in the last week, as confirmed by the Daily Telegraph’s Mideast correspondent Richard Spencer (Konkurs are especially useful in destroying T-72 tanks, the most recent Soviet-era model that the Syrian Army uses.)

More intriguing still is the Western power evidently facilitating this campaign – France. Israeli Army Radio reported this week that French intelligence officials are working with their Saudi counterparts to train up rebels on tactics and weaponry, in concert with the Turkish Defense Ministry (no doubt because Turkish supply-lines to Aleppo are now even more crucial.)

There's lots more, and it is very good reading.

6/21 Links Part 1: Lebanese Apartheid and Carter wants to teach Terrorists Humanitarian Law

From Ian:

Khaled Abu Toameh: Lebanon's Apartheid Laws

The Lebanese, who have always despised Palestinians, are afraid of incorporating them into their economy and workforce. Many Lebanese hold the Palestinians and the PLO responsible for destroying their country, especially during the civil war that claimed the lives of tens of thousands of people during the 1970's and 1980's.
What is disturbing about the Apartheid laws in Lebanon and the mistreatment of Palestinians by Arab countries is the silence of the international community and media.
Even UNRWA, which is supposed to look after the well-being of Palestinian refugees, continues to turn a blind eye to Lebanon's Apartheid laws.
When contacted by The Daily Star for comment on the plight of the Palestinians in Lebanon, UNRWA's public information officer Hoda Samra said she had "no public statement to make regarding this particular issue."

CAMERA: Al-Jazeera English Airs 'Nakba' Myth

There is little doubt that this "Nakba" production is a preview of the type of slick propaganda that can be expected from al-Jazeera when it replaces the programming on Current TV network later this year. At that time, the number of potential viewers will be greatly multiplied since Current TV, unlike al-Jazeera English, is carried by major providers such as Comcast, Verizon, and DirecTV. It's doubtful from a business model viewpoint that providers will chose to cancel Current since al-Jazeera network, in all likelihood, will provide the channel either free or at minimal cost to the providers. The Arab network states that “Al Jazeera English is available free-to-air through satellite and cable providers around the world.”

Are we there yet? BBC improves its accuracy regarding Hamas designation

No context is offered concerning the fact that Zaboun was in fact detained due to his membership of a terrorist organization or that the arrests followed the kidnapping of Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit on the Israeli side of the border with the Gaza Strip.
Neither is any mention made of the fact that Zaboun has headed the ‘charity’ Al Islah in Bethlehem for many years – an organization known to both Israel and the Palestinian Authority due to its history of channelling funding to Hamas’ terrorist-supporting infrastructure from abroad.
And yet, the BBC provides Zaboun with a platform from which to sanitize the activities of his terrorist organization and present himself as a beleaguered parliamentarian:

Ex-President Carter Seeks Weakened Sanctions on Terror Groups

Former President Jimmy Carter is spearheading an effort to convince the United States to weaken sanctions on terrorist groups, The Hill reported.
Carter and other foreign policy experts sent a petition to Secretary of State John Kerry on Thursday, asking him to exempt peace groups from policies that make it a crime to offer negotiation training and humanitarian law classes to terror groups.

ADL Voices Concerns Over Anti-Israel ‘Summer Camps’ for Children as Young as 8

The Anti-Defamation League voiced its concern Wednesday that three groups with anti-Israel agendas will stoke anti-Israel sentiment in children during “summer camps” and “summer institutes” they are planning to establish in New York and Chicago this summer.

Two weeks after appointment, Palestinian PM resigns

Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah tendered his resignation to President Mahmoud Abbas on Thursday, just two weeks after his swearing in, Ma’an News Agency reported.
According to the report, Hamdallah resigned due to “differences over his authorities.”

Two tweet legacy reveals dysfunctional Palestinian leadership

These two tweets, the only ones issued by newly appointed (and freshly resigned) Palestinian Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah give more away about the dysfunctional nature of the Palestinian leadership than Mahmoud Abbas might hope.

Electric Company Suggests: Cut Off Power to PA

The Israel Electric Corporation (IEC) has put together a list of sanctions that it could impose on the Palestinian Authority (PA) if it does not pay its debt to the IEC, which currently stands at 820 million shekels.
The PA acquires 95% of its electricity in Judea and Samaria and 75% of its electricity in Gaza from Israel.

Ashton Calls on Israel to End Gaza 'Siege'

Ashton praised UNRWA's work and pledged that the EU would "continue to be the strongest supporter, that we will give the financial support that is needed, but also the political support."
Hamas officials, with whom Ashton did not meet, urged her to "act immediately to lift the siege of Gaza" and "remove Hamas from the list of terrorist organizations" of the EU, arguing that Hamas simply “defends its people and believes in democracy and openness to the world."

Hamas Sentences 'Collaborator' to Death by Hanging

The defendant, identified only by his initials KC, was "condemned to capital punishment by hanging for collaborating with the Zionist occupier," ministry spokesman Islam Shahwan announced on Facebook.

Bulgaria reveals new evidence on Hezbollah-Burgas link

Bulgaria claims it has previously undisclosed evidence that further implicates Hezbollah in a deadly terrorist attack last year on Bulgarian soil, JTA has learned.
A Bulgarian representative to the European Union said Wednesday that investigators have discovered that a Hezbollah operative was the owner of a printer used to produce fake documents that facilitated the July 19, 2012 bombing of a bus filled with Israeli tourists in Burgas. Five Israelis and their Bulgarian driver were killed in the attack.

Hosni Mubarak fortune estimated at $1.3bn USD

Egyptian authorities released the information at a time when around 40 per cent of the Egyptian population is living below the poverty line.
Public attorney Mahmoud Al Hefnawi told a Cairo criminal Court on Thursday that the estimated wealth includes 3 billion Egyptian pounds in cash, corporate stakes worth 5 billion and real-estate assets worth 1 billion.

Syria and Egypt Can’t Be Fixed

Egypt remains a pre-modern society, with nearly 50% illiteracy, a 30% rate of consanguineal marriage, a 90% rate of female genital mutilation, and an un- or underemployment rate over 40%. Syria has neither enough oil nor water to maintain the bazaar economy dominated by the Assad family.
Both were disasters waiting to happen. Economics, to be sure, set the stage but did not give the cues: Syria’s radical Sunnis revolted in part out of enthusiasm for the ascendancy of the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt and partly in fear of Iran’s ambition to foster Shi’ite ascendancy in the region.

Egypt's Coptic Christians say they are 'no longer safe'

Heba Morayef, Regional Human Rights Watch director, worries that extremists are now free to encourage discrimination on TV. “It’s very scary because of the sudden uptick in violence, compounded by the fact that the Muslim Brotherhood has in no way tried to reign it back and has at times participated.”

New Iran leader a ‘change in style, not of substance,’ Netanyahu says

Iran’s new leader presents a smiling face, but does not represent a change in policy for the regime in Tehran, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said during his address to the closing session of the 2013 Israel Presidential Conference on Thursday evening.
The Islamic Republic must not be allowed to build a nuclear weapon, the prime minister said, speaking to a packed crowd of dignitaries on a wide range of topics currently facing Israel.

Iran Neighbor Accepts First Israeli Ambassador

The Central Asian state of Turkmenistan, which shares a 1,000 kilometer border with Iran, has accepted the credentials of the first ever Israeli ambassador to the country, state media said Wednesday.

Quran theme park being built in Dubai

From IBTimes:

Dubai has spent the past decade creating a playground to match the tastes of the West, much to the chagrin of many of the region’s stricter Muslim nations. By the end of next year, however, the glitzy emirate plans to open a unique public park project called Holy Quran Park to cater to its regional base.

The DM said in a press release that the proposed park, to be located in Al Khawaneej, had been designed “from an Islamic perspective to introduce the miracles of Quran through a variety of surprises for the visitors.” Designs include an outdoor theater, fountains, lake, walking and biking tracks, children’s play area, Umrah corner and “areas for showing the miracles of the Quran.”

The 60-hectare park will also include a series of Islamic gardens featuring many of the 54 plants and trees mentioned in the text of the Quran, including fig, olive, leek, garlic, tamarind, basil and pomegranate. "A glass building will accommodate 15 items of plants, and other items will be planted in different specific gardens. These plants are expected to stimulate the visitors to think about the reason behind mentioning the names of these plants in the Quran," Mashroom told the Emirates News Agency. The space allocated for the “miracles of Quran,” he added, would include an air-conditioned tunnel with stories on the walls.

The initial site preparation, including tracks and service buildings, has already been completed, according to DM. The second phase will begin in July 2013, while the third and final phase will last just one month between August and September 2014.

Will there be a Gharqad tree so the Jews can hide behind it?

Egyptian opposition readies for massive protest with the ultimate insult to the Muslim Brotherhood

Al Mogaz reports on a meeting of Egyptian opposition group Tamarod (Rebellion) in Alexandria as it is gearing up for massive anti-government protests set for June 30, the anniversary of President Morsi's taking office.

During the meeting, the participants chanted a variation of the famous "Khyber, Khyber ya Yahud" insult to Jews, but this one was aimed at the Muslim Brotherhood.

They said "Khaybar, khaybar, ya ikhwan, a-shar'iyya fil midan!" which means "Khaybar, Khaybar, o Brotherhood, our legitimacy is in [Tahrir] Square!"

Remember that when the protests against the Mubarak regime started in Tahrir Square, it was spearheaded by secularists. The Islamists joined the protests much later when it looked like the protesters were going to win, and then they co-opted the entire revolution with their superior organization and media skills.

Here, the original protesters are equating the Muslim Brotherhood with the hated Jews, which is as bad an insult as one can hurl in Egypt.

The anticipation in Egypt before the protests is already sky-high, and the next nine days will be very interesting.

UNRWA school in Syria hit by mortars, five Palestinian Arabs killed

From UNRWA:

At around 10:00pm on 19 June 2013, at least three mortar shells struck Khan Eshieh Palestine refugee camp just outside Damascus. It was not clear which party to the conflict fired the shells. One shell hit an UNRWA school accommodating 260 displaced Palestine refugees. At least five Palestine refugees, including two children and two women, were killed inside the school and eleven sustained serious injuries including an UNRWA staff member.

Really? Five Palestinian Arab civilians - including two children - are killed at a UNRWA school and no media reported it yet (as of this writing)?

Ah, it must be because Israel cannot be blamed!

According to the Action Group for Palestinians of Syria, some nine Syrian Palestinians were killed yesterday, including three children. The total number of Palestinian Arabs killed so far in the civil war is 1377.

Bet you haven't read that statistic in the media, either.

Video: Hezbollah forcibly tattooing Shiite slogan on Syrian refugee in Lebanon - as a warning

If true, this is gruesome:

A disturbing video has surfaced on the Internet.... It appears to show an alleged Hezbollah supportet forcibly tattooing the phrase, “Oh father of Abdullah, Hussein,” a reference to the revered imam of Shia Islam, onto the forehead of an unidentified man who appears to be Syrian.

The person who posted the video – which could not be independently verified - claims that the tattoo artist is a Hezbollah supporter.

The man receiving the tattoo – apparently by force – looks subdued and can be seen being slapped in the face several times during the video. Below is a translation of what the tattoo artist can be heard saying as he inks the man’s forehead:

“This is the father of Abdullah. This is Hussein, this is Hussein. If he [Allah] loves you, he will take you to heaven. I’m trying to make a Muslim out of you. Not with the regime or against the regime.
For those who sent you, [send them this message] tell them, “look what they’ve done to me?”
Say this to them: this is a message to those who hate Shia.

They sent me to you alive saying, Father of Abdullah (Hussein) if you try to come close to us Shia, we will f*ck your mothers…

I will even put a conjugation (the hamzeh) on it for you.

Say ‘hi’ to [Salafist Lebanese Sheikh Ahmed] al-Assir.”

The shocking footage comes amid reports by local media that an estimated 37,000 Syrians have left Lebanon in the last three days. (as of June 5)

As the linked report alludes to, it’s unclear what sparked the abrupt mass exodus, but if Syrians in the country feel they’re being harassed because of tensions over the current uprising against President Bashar al-Assad, that’s impetus enough to want to leave.

(h/t Ibn Boutros)

Return to Auschwitz: How Israel keeps Holocaust memories alive (BBC)

The BBC has an excellent, very long magazine piece - including videos - about how Israel keeps the memory of the Holocaust alive as the remaining survivors dwindle.

The Israeli delegation is marching in the footsteps of the many Jews who took their last steps here.

This is the spot where German SS officers rapidly assessed which prisoners looked fit and strong enough to be sent to the wooden blockhouses where the slave labourers lived. The Germans had taken a timber building originally designed to house about 50 cavalry horses and adapted it to the demands of the prison camp. Four hundred prisoners were crammed into the same space, packed on to double-decker bunks. In freezing rooms on starvation rations only a few lived for more than a few months.

The rest were herded towards the gas chambers.

It was murder on an industrial scale - whole communities perished together within hours of climbing down from the trains.

So the most moving moment in the Israeli soldiers' journey comes inside one of the old blockhouses, where a handful of them read out loud lists of the names of family members who died in the Holocaust.

Sometimes almost nothing is known to tell the stories of lives that were not lived, except a name.

As Yishai Szekely - a doctor who serves as a reserve officer in an artillery unit - explains, in some families first-hand memories are passed down. There are photographs or books and ornaments with stories attached, that make the dead seem real.

Here, the reading of the names is the only way to reclaim the dead from the anonymity of genocide.

"Six million is such a huge number, even to think of 1,000 it confuses you," Szekely says. "The power is in the name because we don't have much left. That's the only thing we can touch or understand or imagine, our only connection that we could start to make to our past… When you connect to one name, one person to one name, it makes it easier for you to understand."

When the last name has been read, I stroll between the blockhouses with Yechiel Aleksander, who was brought to Auschwitz as a teenager in 1944, on one of the Eastern Transports - the trains that carried the Jews to the selection process between life and death.

He survived of course and went to Israel after the war.

This is his 35th trip back to Poland with Israeli delegations to deliver lectures about what life was like here and to answer questions when he can.

The first nine or 10 trips back here affected him very badly, he says. For a moment, switching between Hebrew and the fluent Polish he still remembers from childhood, he is lost for words. He describes how the visits depressed him, by holding his hand out straight and level and then suddenly bringing it down in a plunging, swooping motion.

He still comes, though. He believes that those who know what it was like here have a special responsibility towards those who do not.

He remembers discussing the expulsion of the Jewish community from Spain at the end of the 15th Century with a group of Israeli schoolchildren and realising that most didn't know anything about it.

What, he wondered, if the Holocaust were to be forgotten in the same way, two or three generations from now?

"In 1994 I promised that all this must remain for future generations. I thought [if things remained the way they were] that in two generations from now no-one would even know that this place existed. It's much easier now that I know I'm passing things on to youngsters. Perhaps it will stick now and each generation will pass it on to the next generation."

...

A few years ago the Israeli newspaper Yediot Ahronot published the extraordinary story of a photograph which hung on the wall of the office of Meir Dagan, who rose to become head of Mossad, Israel's external intelligence agency.

It is a slightly battered black-and-white print showing a scene from 1942 in the village of Lukow in central Poland. An older Jewish man is kneeling on the floor surrounded by German soldiers.

It is Meir Dagan's grandfather, who is known to have been murdered a short time later.

The picture came to light when Dagan's father returned to his home village after the war, to look for Jewish survivors.

They asked a local Polish man to take some photographs. When he handed over the film roll and they eventually had it processed, they discovered at its start the picture of the Germans surrounding the helpless old man. The photographer must have been taking photographs for the newly-arrived Nazis too.

The photograph is appalling, but it's historically interesting too.

The young Germans are not Aryan supermen but ordinary soldiers called up into their reserve infantry battalions for service in Poland.

It's worth examining the soldier's attitudes - they do not look to me like men who feel they've been caught doing something reprehensible. They look like men posing for a photograph which they intend to display on the mantelpiece in years to come.

Meir Dagan rose to become one of the most powerful men in Israel and throughout his career he had the photograph of his grandfather and the Germans on the office wall.

The lesson he reads into it is simple: "We have," he tells me, "no choice but to rely on ourselves... and there's a hard moral lesson from the Holocaust that anyone could become a murderer. The killings weren't carried out by fanatics but by what might be called normal men."

Read the whole thing.

(h/t Zvi)

IDF soldiers swear allegiance to Israel - on a Koran

From the IDF Blog:

Over the next few minutes, the Golani Brigade’s soldiers who drafted in March of this year will swear allegiance to the State of Israel and commit to do all they can to protect it. Muhammad, an Arab Muslim resident of the Galilee village of Dabburiya, is one of them. Like his friends, he’s excited for the ceremony to begin.

The ceremony begins. As the brigade commander finishes his speech, the soldiers quickly run to their commanders, their families and their friends who have come to show their support and encouragement.

When Pvt. Muhammad Atrash's turn comes, he doesn’t look for anyone in the audience. “My parents wanted to come, but I convinced them not to,” he explains. “Jerusalem is very far from our home, we don’t have a car and it’s an hour-long drive.”

The commander tells Muhammad to stand in front of him. Instead of the Hebrew Bible, the young soldier picks up a Quran, decorated with gold ornaments. He swears his allegiance to the State of Israel, holding the book tightly and smiling.

“I’m mostly trying to feel the experience, because It’s my first time ever in Jerusalem,” he says.

For Muhammad, 18, this is an important step in his unique relationship with the Israel Defense Forces – which began a year and a half ago, when his older brother, Milad, 19, chose to enlist.

“While still in high school I asked my family, ‘Why don’t we, the Muslims, enlist?’” Milad recalls. “‘Why do the Jews, the Druze and the Bedouins enlist, while we don’t?’ They explained to me that Jews serve because it’s their country, that the Druze [community] had signed agreements with the IDF and that we have a lot of Islamic movements that oppose military service in the IDF.”

Milad’s response? “I told them I don’t care about that. I want to join the army to protect my village, my country,” he says.