Elder Of Ziyon - Israel News

Wednesday, November 20, 2013

To protest UNRWA cutbacks, PalArabs shut UNRWA offices

I'm sure there is a logic to this, somehow:

The popular service committees of Palestinian refugee camps in the northern West Bank will shut down all UNRWA offices and programs, except clinics and schools, Wednesday and Thursday.

In a joint statement, the committees said the move was part of ongoing protests against "UNRWA's systematic reductions" in services provided to Palestinian refugees in the region.

The decision came following a meeting Tuesday at the headquarters of the refugees' affairs department in Nablus in the northern West Bank. Representatives of the services committees and northern West Bank districts attended the meeting.

The participants agreed that protests for next week would be determined after a meeting scheduled for Thursday in Ramallah with the director of UNRWA operation in the West Bank.

The committees will decide whether to carry out further protests and when depending on the outcome of the meeting.

One of the UN's oldest agencies, UNRWA faces a $36 million deficit.

"UNRWA will be unable to adequately fund its core services -- especially in education, health and poverty mitigation -- and will be unable to pay December salaries of its 30,000 teachers, medical personnel and social workers," under secretary general Jeffrey Feltman told the Security Council.

To protest cutbacks in services they shut down those very services?

Hey, if they do this a couple of times a week, then UNRWA might meet its budget! Everyone will be happy!

By the way, here's what the kids in Balata are being taught by that wonderful agency UNRWA:

UNRWA is reason #4,934 why peace is impossible.

(h/t Israel Muse)

Tom Friedman says Congress more interested in Jewish votes than supporting Obama's wonderful Iran plan

Thomas Friedman, in the New York Times, defends the Obama administration's offering concessions to Iran and has this to say about those who disagree:

Never have I seen Israel and America’s core Arab allies working more in concert to stymie a major foreign policy initiative of a sitting U.S. president, and never have I seen more lawmakers — Democrats and Republicans — more willing to take Israel’s side against their own president’s. I’m certain this comes less from any careful consideration of the facts and more from a growing tendency by many American lawmakers to do whatever the Israel lobby asks them to do in order to garner Jewish votes and campaign donations.

He's certain that members of Congress care little about Iran and are more loyal to the almighty Jewish dollar than to their own country.

Because how can any thinking person possibly believe that giving concessions to Iran is a bad deal? It must be the Jewish money that corrupts their mindset!

Of course, Friedman admits:

If you’re not skeptical about Iran, you’re not paying attention. Iran has lied and cheated its way to the precipice of building a bomb, and without tough economic sanctions — sanctions that President Obama engineered but which Netanyahu and the Arab states played a key role in driving — Iran would not be at the negotiating table. I also understand the specific concerns of the Gulf Arabs, which I’d summarize as: “It looks to us as if you want to do this deal and then get out of the region — and leave behind an Iran that will only become economically more powerful, at a time when it already has enormous malign influence in Syria, Iraq, in Lebanon through Hezbollah, and in Bahrain.”

But our greedy members of Congress aren't thinking that deeply. Only Friedman is, just enough to dismiss it:

I get it, but I also don’t think we’d just abandon them.

You see? Friedman doesn't think anything bad will happen, and by gosh, that's all anyone needs! On the basis of his wonderful track record, Congress should do what he says, not what logic dictates!

There is plenty more to criticize in this column - Friedman makes a bizarre comparison between negotiating with Iran and Israel building "more settlements." Really. He exaggerates the Israeli position in order to pompously dismiss it: "While, Netanyahu believes more sanctions will get Iran to surrender every piece of its nuclear technology, Iran experts say that is highly unlikely." However, Netanyahu never demanded that - no one ha a problem with a peaceful nuclear energy program. And there are plenty of other factoids that Friedman knows he can get away with, because New York Times op-ed fact checkers are not exactly known to care too much about facts.

The bottom line is, though, that Thomas Friedman is insulting hundreds of democratically elected members of Congress, essentially accusing them of disloyalty to their own country. While dismissing any real concerns about Iranian nuclear weapons and how they would affect the world. All in order to defend a single elected president's inconsistent and frightening Middle East policy.

And he does it using an antisemitic "Jews control America" canard.

Iraqi official makes a plea for tolerance: "Baghdad used to be 20% Jewish"

Aswat al-Iraq reports that Iraqi Undersecretary of the Ministry of Culture Fawzi Al Atrushi, at a conference on the rights of minorities in Iraq, said that 20% of the population of the city of Baghdad in 1921 were Jews, but now they are just footnotes in archives. He also warned that the same could happen to Iraqi minorities like Christians, whose rights continue to be restricted.

In a speech at the opening of the conference in Baghdad yesterday that "tolerance is not just a word to be thrown around."

"When King Faisal I entered Baghdad in 1921 some 20% of the city's population was Iraqi Jews, and now we are in the year 2013, this component of the Iraqi has turned into a mere archive we are trying to retrieve from the United States after they were repaired and restored."

Al Atrushi ccontinued, "The rights of minorities and tolerance among factions is part of culture and education and must reflect conduct on the ground, and not mere meetings and slogans and allegations about a reality does not exist."

"[Tolerance and coexistence] are the common ground and the common denominator between all religions and laws and international conventions, and it requires first and foremost the concrete embodiment on the ground. "

He said, "Indeed, majorities still prey on minorities, and males dominate, prey and marginalize women because violence is the dominant language among us."

Al Atrushi warned that "minorities in Iraq are in danger, and this is our challenge for advancement of all of us to build a civilized country linked to the world today, not in the past. "

He added that Iraq is "at a crossroads. Either live and come to terms with a state of citizenship and civil rights and democracy, or a divided nation, as happened in Czechoslovakia, Yugoslavia and other countries."

He warned that Christians, who are at "the root of the historical identity of the nation, are diminishing daily. The Mandaeans, who make up one of the oldest peoples of Iraq, are subjected to exclusion and marginalization, and other Iraqi factions as well."

"Even the Kurdish people were threatened by the former regime by a most heinous racist war that threatened their existence."

Atrushi said, "We in the Ministry of Culture are interested in maintaining diversity and pluralism and coexistence between the segments and the components of the Iraqi people, whether ethnic, religious, sectarian or intellectual, because that is the way to weave a national identity of an Iraqi culture of diversity rather than a culture of one type. "

He stressed that for tolerance to be a reality it "must be accompanied by an apology, an apology from the majorities to the minorities, which provides a clean atmosphere and environment for reconciliation, all experiments done by civilized peoples prove it."

I'm not familiar enough with that part of the world to know how anomalous these words are. I have not stumbled onto many speeches like this in Arabic media. Icoul dnot find any mention of this speech on either Iraq's Ministry of Culture website nor on Atrushi's own personal website.

11/19 Links Pt2: LATMA returns?, Bennett schools Amanpour, Fisk turns on Arafat, Gasoline from water!

From Ian:

At Last? Channel 1 to Sign Contract with 'Latma' Satire

The Chairman and the Director of the Israel Broadcasting Authority (IBA) promised the Knesset's Education Committee Monday that the IBA will sign a contract with nationalistic satire Latma in two months' time, for production of a weekly program.
The satire ran successfully on an internet platform for three years but negotiations with IBA's TV Channel 1 dragged out and came to nothing, until Latma's production was halted in July due to budget limitations. The program is the brainchild of Caroline Glick, who is also Deputy Editor of the Jerusalem Post.

Busted: Former Chair of Major UK Israel Boycott Group Caught Buying Crack, Crystal Meth

The former chairman of a British consumer cooperative known for its aggressive boycotts of the Jewish state is at the center of a major controversy after being caught on camera buying illicit drugs.
In a video acquired by the Mail on Sunday, Paul Flowers was recorded discussing the cocaine and crystal meth he wants from a dealer. He then counts out £300 in £20 notes and sends a friend to make the deal.

French Government Funding of Politicized NGOs Active in the Arab-Israeli Conflict: BDS and Demonization

Organizations receiving French funding engage in political activities and lead campaigns that are inconsistent with French foreign policy in the Middle East, which calls for a “two state” framework, and with French jurisprudence that considers anti-Israel boycotts to constitute incitement and discrimination based on nationality.

The Guardian AGAIN falsely suggests that Tel Aviv is Israel’s capital

So, while reading the following opening passage, in a Nov. 8 article by the Guardian’s Middle East Editor Ian Black (Hawks squawk even before Iran nuclear deal is sealed), keep in mind that the paper has at least officially ‘acknowledged’ that Tel Aviv is NOT the capital of Israel and that the seat of government is located in Jerusalem.

Hardliners in Tehran, hawks in Tel Aviv and Washington, nervous Saudis and their Gulf allies are all alarmed at the prospect of a nuclear deal between Iran, the US and the international community.

Fisk says Yasser Arafat's real problem was that he was too trusting of Israel and America

The trouble with Fisk, like all such characters, is that once you've tried everything to discredit the Jewish state, where do you go next? In his latest article, Fisk gives us an answer: the real reason for the failure of a peace was that Yasser Arafat, the Godfather of modern terrorism, was just too generous and trusting:
"He made so many concessions to Israel – because he was growing old and wanted to go to “Palestine” before he died – that his political descendants are still paying for them. Arafat had never seen a Jewish colony on occupied land when he accepted the Oslo agreement. He trusted the Americans. He trusted the Israelis. He trusted anyone who appeared to say the right things."

Fisk Revives Uranium Charge?

Back in October 2006, Fisk was given the front page of the UK’s Independent to spread the libel that Israel had used uranium-based weapons in southern Lebanon. The charge was swiftly debunked yet Fisk and the Independent have never, to this day, retracted this libel.
Fisk still seems to be stringing along the story, despite the evidence, that Israel has used depleted uranium weaponry. Even after it is confirmed to him that no such weaponry is in IDF usage, Fisk still implies that these figments of his imagination have been deployed somewhere.
When will Robert Fisk give up his Israeli uranium charge?

Israel critics can’t handle “Brutal Honesty” about Lydda and refugees

In other words, Israel is a “do no right colonial monster.” Clearly, what Friedman means about the importance of Shavit’s book is that Netanyahu should be more forthcoming and give the Palestinians everything that they demand to make peace, because, in truth, Israel is truly responsible for the Palestinians’ suffering.
However, the story of Lydda (now called Lod) is not so simple. The residents of Lydda were not summarily expelled. The expulsion was a response to a massacre of Israeli soldiers, after the town had agreed to terms of surrender.

Laura Rozen Accuses Jewish Expert of Speaking at Instruction of Israeli Government

Foreign policy reporter Laura Rozen tweeted, and then deleted, a claim that a Jewish official at a prominent Washington think tank took positions on Iran at the instruction of the Israeli government.
Rozen, a reporter for the Middle East news site Al Monitor, tweeted the accusation on Friday as Foundation for Defense of Democracies’ (FDD) executive director Mark Dubowitz was giving a radio interview about Iran’s contested nuclear program.

Netanyahu invites Abbas to Knesset ‘for sake of peace’

Netanyahu, speaking at a special session in honor of visiting French President Francois Hollande, said he would return the favor and speak in Ramallah in service of a two-state solution.
“Most of the Knesset members are unified: In order for the peace to be real, it must go in both directions. One cannot demand that we recognize a Palestinian national state without demanding of them to recognize a Jewish state,” the prime minister said.
“Mr. President, hours ago you met Mahmoud Abbas,” Netanyahu noted, addressing Hollande. “And I call on him today: Let’s break the stalemate. Come to the Knesset. I will come to Ramallah. Come onto this stage and recognize the historical truth.”

Ben-Gurion’s Legacy: Resisting U.S. Pressure

McDonald further wrote: “Two U.N. Security Council resolutions passed [with U.S. support] have implicitly threatened sanctions if Israeli troops were not withdrawn [from the 'occupied Negev'].” Ben-Gurion reacted defiantly: “Israel has been attacked by six Arab States. As a small country, Israel must reserve the right of self-defense even if it goes down fighting. … As Ben-Gurion once put it to me, ‘What Israel has won on the battlefield, it is determined not to yield at the [U.N. Security] Council table.’”
As a result of Ben-Gurion’s determined stance, “there was apparently indecision and much heart-searching in Washington…. Our [responding] note abandoned completely the stern tone of its predecessor. … Fists and knuckles were unclenched. … The crisis was past. The next few months marked a steady retreat from the intransigence of the United States’ May note. … Washington ceased to lay down the law to Tel Aviv.”

Minister Bennett: Now is Most Fateful Time for Israel Since Yom Kippur War

On a mission in the U.S. to represent Israel’s position on the ongoing nuclear talks between Iran and world powers, the Jewish state’s Economy Minister Naftali Bennett was blunt and to the point, speaking before a crowd at Manhattan’s 92nd Street Y Sunday.
“It is the most fateful days since the Yom Kippur War in Israel,” he said, referring to the time since the founding of modern Israel that the country was most in peril.

Bennett: One Cannot 'Occupy' His Own Homeland

When Amanpour, however, used the term “occupied West Bank” in her question, Bennett held up a coin which, he pointed out, was “used by Jews 2,000 years ago in the state of Israel.”
Amanpour tried to interrupt Bennett by saying that “occupied West Bank” was “an international term” but Bennett continued, “I don’t accept it. This coin, which says in Hebrew ‘freedom of Zion’ was used by Jews 2,000 years ago in the state of Israel, in what you call ‘occupied’”.
“One cannot occupy his own home,” stressed Bennett. (7:30)

PA: No Peace Without Full 'Right of Return'

In a law approved by the PA parliament in 2008, and signed into law by Abbas, the “right of return of Palestinian refugees to their homes and property, along with compensation for their suffering, is a holy cornerstone of their rights that cannot be negotiated away. There will be no consideration of negotiation on this issue, nor will there be a referendum on it,” the law says.
A separate PA law states that “it is forbidden for Palestinian refugees to leave their current domicile as a solution for the 'right of return.' Anyone who acts against this law will be seen as a traitor, and will be subject to the penalties that this crime entails.” The law of the language is similar to that of the law against selling land to Jews. PA Arabs who do so are considered “traitors,” and their penalty is death.

UN chief Ban Ki-moon visits Auschwitz

Ban said "nothing can truly prepare one for this epicenter of evil, where systematic murder unique in human history reached its atrocious climax."
During his visit, Ban also saw exhibitions documenting the lives of the inmates and the conditions they suffered.
"The world must never forget, deny or downplay the Holocaust. We must remain ever on our guard," Ban said during his visit.

Knesset to Speak Up for Rights of Jews Expelled from Arab Lands

As the date for Israel's independence edged closer throughout the 1940s, Jews who had lived for centuries in Arab-majority countries such as Egypt, Iraq, and Libya found themselves increasingly persecuted by their Arab co-nationals.
When Israel was established, approximately one million Jews from Arab countries were forced to leave their homes due to pogroms, state discrimination and persecution. In many cases, such as the former Jewish community of Libya, entire Jewish populations were simply expelled in one go by the government.

Israel in the Philippines

Israel is so ready to extend aid in part precisely because we have grappled with and overcome so many difficulties. Our experiences give us so much to offer others. In dealing with our own unique challenges, Israelis have become experts at dealing with emergency scenarios; have the know-how to develop agriculture in deserts; and have developed water conservation techniques in a region that is desperately short of water.

Philippines ambassador joins Jerusalem youths in effort for typhoon victims

Philippine Ambassador Generoso D.G. Calogne rolled up his sleeves, along with 21 eighth-graders from Boys Town Jerusalem in the capital Monday morning, to pack much-needed relief supplies for Typhoon Haiyan survivors still reeling from the devastating tropical storm.
Working in coordination with the Philippine Embassy, Calogne and the students prepared 25 boxes filled with ready-to-eat food, blankets, pillows and other basic necessities donated by the school, located in the Bayit Vagan neighborhood.

IDF Home Front Command Repairs School in the Philippines

Christian IDF Recruitment Numbers Affirm Israeli Democracy

Over the summer, the Israeli media highlighted a phenomenon that is both intriguing and encouraging: a movement among Israel’s Christian Arabs advocating that their community be drafted, along with the country’s Jewish and Druze citizens, into the Israel Defense Forces.
Historically, Israel’s Arab citizens have been exempted from mandatory conscription. There have been exceptions—many Bedouin, for example, have served in the IDF with distinction—but those who actually volunteer are a tiny minority. At the same time, many Arabs have complained, not without justification, that the exemption marginalizes them from fully participating in Israeli life.

Fill ‘er up with a gallon of ‘water gasoline’

With a revolutionary system for making gasoline out of hydrogen extracted from water, and from carbon dioxide, two of the most common substances on earth, Herskowitz believes that he and his team at Ben-Gurion (including Prof. Miron Landau, Dr. Roxana Vidruk, and others at BGU’s Blechner Center for Industrial Catalysis and Process Development) have come up with the one alternative fuel that can succeed on a wide scale.
Herskowitz’s fuel is the realization of generations of inventors as well as environmentalists — a clean-burning fuel that that can replace refined oil in existing engines, saving society the huge cost, not to mention hassle, of changing everything to accommodate new fuel technologies.

TIME names ReWalk among ’25 Best Inventions of the Year 2013

Israeli-developed exoskeleton for paraplegics is one of TIME magazine’s 25 Best Inventions of the Year 2013. The medical device developed by ARGO Medical Technologies is hailed for the autonomy it gives back to those who need it most.
“Call it an exoskeleton or a bionic suit, but for paraplegics, it’s freedom. This innovative device, developed by a quadriplegic Israeli scientist, relies on sensors that anticipate shifts in the user’s balance and translates them into movements like walking and standing,” writes the magazine about ReWalk.

In Israel, water where there was none

Israel, hoping to build on its home-grown success, is now turning to Massachusetts as an ally in this contest between nature and technology as rising temperatures, spreading deserts, growing populations, and pollution make water an increasingly precious commodity around the world. Attracted by the state’s technical know-how, innovative culture, and access to world markets, Israeli companies are investing, relocating, and seeking partnerships in Massachusetts to further advance their technologies and build a US platform from which to launch their global ambitions.
In Massachusetts, state officials and entrepreneurs see collaboration with Israel as an opportunity to build another world-class technology sector, one that will create potable water from the ocean; nurture crops with treated sewage; manage water quality with software; and mine for water in much the same way precious gems are unearthed. (h/t sophie44)

At San Francisco State University, the General Union of Palestine Students recently held a celebration of Edward Said, where they have a mural honoring him.

At the event, according to AMCHA, the GUPS students set up tables with stencils for making posters with images of known terrorists as well as with the words “MY HEROES HAVE ALWAYS KILLED COLONIZERS,” which students displayed in the campus square.

Yes, to SFSU, it is acceptable for Palestinian Arabs to call for the murder of Jews who live in Israel. Free speech, right?

The event was covered by the SFSU newspaper, but they didn't mention the hate posters. The comments do, though.

One fan of GUPS put the photo above on Indymedia, with the ironic subhead "Rejecting normalization is not incitement to violence." Well, this is.

Pro-Israel Bay Bloggers has been all over the story. And they have plenty of other examples of incitement and hate at SFSU.

Amcha has a sample letter to send to the president of SFSU. The only way that these disgusting actions can be banned is if there is enough pressure. It would be a very good idea to spend a couple of minutes to write to President Wong and cc: the appropriate California State University and government officials mentioned in the Amcha link.

UPDATE: Israellycool has the background on the slogan.

Bob K. in the comments identifies the person holding the sign as Hamdi Bazian.

Islamic Jihad's latest terror/music video

As I was surfing terrorist websites I realized its been a while since I posted one of those terrorist music videos.

So here is the latest from Islamic Jihad:

Compare, if you will, with my classic 2008 work spoofing terrorist videos:

Clearly the terrorists have made video innovations in recent years:

Use of fast motion (0:30, 4:45)
A 38-second section just showing photos of dead terrorists in the clouds (3:12-3:50)
Terrorists putting up posters of their dead founder before shooting rockets (2:18)

The videos are still interminable, though.

11/19 Links Pt1: Abbas Cracks Down on Media, Hamas: 'We'll Come to Your Homes, Your Schools'

From Ian:

Khaled Abu Toameh: Palestinians: Abbas Cracks Down on Media, World Looks Other Way

These groups [human rights, media, Western donor governments] see only what the Israeli authorities do. On the side of the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank, or Hamas in the Gaza Strip, they "see no evil." For Western governments, so long as the Palestinian Authority leadership says it is committed to the peace process with Israel, its leaders are allowed to rule as a dictatorship.
The Palestinian Authority also apparently does not want the outside world, especially international donors, to hear about the financial corruption or violations of freedom of the media. It seems to want criticism to be directed only toward Israel in the hope that this will invite international pressure on the Israelis and force them to accept at the negotiating able all of Abbas's demands.

The UK is paying Palestinians to murder Jews

The following letter sent to my constituency MP is self-explantory:
The policy of the Palestinian Authority clearly encourages the terrorist murder of Jews, since the murderers are guaranteed not just wealth beyond the dreams of ordinary Palestinians, but also great adulation (it is standard for the PA to name roads, squares, and even soccer tournaments after convicted murderers). Since the Palestinian Authority is funded solely by the EU and USA perhaps you can assure me that you will ask the Foreign Secretary to:
a) immediately stop all payments to the Palestinian Authority, hence putting a stop to this incitement and direct support for terrorism; and
b) avoid pressuring Israel to release terrorist murderers (perhaps noting that this is the equivalent of expecting the UK to release people like the murderers of soldier Lee Rigby as a 'peace gesture').

CAIR's Ayloush Gives Dishonest, Bullying Answer to Hamas Question

Cornered by a straightforward question he did not want to answer, the head of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) Los Angeles office chose instead to misrepresent his organization's actions and feign outrage that the question itself was bigoted.
"Will CAIR-Los Angeles or CAIR-National – will you condemn Hamas?" Hussam Ayloush was asked outside his chapter's annual fundraising banquet Saturday evening.

BBC’s Knell still can’t get Hamas terror designation right

Hamas is in fact defined as a terrorist organization by Israel, the United States, the European Union, Canada and Japan – as the BBC’s own profile of Hamas clearly states. In addition, Australia designates Hamas’ Izz al Din Al Qassam Brigades as a terrorist organization, as do New Zealand and the United Kingdom.
As also noted in the BBC’s profile, Hamas not only “refuses to recognise Israel”: its charter commits it to that country’s destruction.

Hamas: 'We'll Come to Your Homes, Your Schools'

Speaking on behalf of Hamas at the College for Science and Technology in Khan Yunis on Monday, al-Masri emphasized that the next conflict with Israel would be underground, and that "we will enter your homes, your schools, your positions and your strongholds."
Al-Masri also added that the terror organization now has missiles capable of a 100-km radius - capable of reaching Jerusalem and Tel Aviv - in its possession.

A strike on Iran: Complex, but possible

The number of facilities that would need to be hit to deal a fatal blow to Iran's nuclear infrastructure is generally overestimated. The essential ingredient for building a nuclear bomb is uranium enriched to a level of more than 90%, meaning that the enrichment facilities at Natanz and Fordo must be taken care of. The reactor at Arak, designed to produce plutonium (another fissionable material suitable for building a nuclear bomb), is not yet active, but it is a worthy target, similar to the reactor that was destroyed in Iraq in 1981.

Netanyahu has nothing to lose except losing

What could save the deal is if the Iranians fake throwing up their hands. What could save the world from a bad deal is if the ayatollahs harden their positions. The level of doubt over Iran's behavior, to the point where even Washington, eager for a compromise with Tehran, could resist acquiescence, marked the core of Secretary of State John Kerry's decision to take a rain check on his visit to Jerusalem this week; he's not sure what might be in his hands come Friday.
No doubt, Israel is stuck in an inferior position. Even Hollande's visit could not change that, mainly because the French president would not give up mixing the Iran deal with the settlement-development issue. But, in light of the current situation, just as peace talks are set to resume on Wednesday, there's no reason Netanyahu should back off the process he has practically been leading himself. He's still got the chance to succeed. He's got nothing to lose by persevering. At least it shows integrity.

Netanyahu: 'Partial deals are bad deals'

“I don't advocate partial deals. I think partial deals are bad deals,” Netanyahu told host Candy Crowley in an interview Sunday on CNN’s “State of the Union.” “If you want to do a partial deal, then decide what the final deal is, and then do one step. Decide that the final deal will actually implement the very terms that you, the P5+1, have put in the Security Council resolution.”
He said a final deal should include dismantling all centrifuges and plutonium reactors in Iran. But negotiations aren’t heading in that direction, and President Barack Obama has said some sanctions could be lifted in a deal and quickly reversed if Iran doesn’t stand by its promises.
Reducing any sanctions now, however, could bring an end to sanctions in the near future, Netanyahu said, warning that was “not a good idea.”

US Jewish leaders feel misled by White House over Iran deal

The US Jewish leaders feel that the administration showed a “lack of trust” in them, a source close to the contacts said.
Obama administration officials did not tell them that they had been secretly negotiating with Iran for the past year, and that the Geneva talks were really “precooked,” The Times of Israel was told, and thus it was an act of bad faith for the administration to ask the Jewish groups to hold off on pressure for more sanctions with the promise that they would meet again in 30-60 days to consider where the negotiations had led.

PM: Iran already has enough material for five bombs

“The Iranians already have five bombs’ worth of low-enriched uranium,” he told the German daily Bild. “If you press the sanctions now, you might actually get a better deal. If you have a bad diplomatic solution — what this appears to be — you actually may get the consequences you want to avoid. That is, you would have no choice but to exercise a military option in the future.”
In order to build a nuclear bomb, highly enriched uranium in necessary, yet it is possible to convert low-enriched material to weapons-grade level rather quickly. According to some experts, Iran could produce enough weapons-grade uranium to build an atomic weapon within two weeks.

Steinitz: World willing to cheat itself over Iran

Warning that the "world is cheating itself" over the deal," Steinitz said, "Tomorrow, there will be a return to the negotiations table in Geneva, and in light of the agreement taking shape, I'd like to clarify that the government of Israel believes this is a bad deal. No one can force us to take part in the celebration, which could be a fake celebration. It's important to stress that if someone thinks that it is comfortable and pleasant to be the one who spoils the celebration, they are wrong. We would prefer to be part of the celebration, but on such a critical issue to our welfare and to world peace, we will not lie to ourselves," Steinitz said.

We’ll continue enriching, won’t shut nuclear sites, Iran lawmaker says

Speaking to Iran’s Arabic-language news station Al-Alam, Mohammad Hassan Asfari, a member of the Iranian parliament’s National Security and Foreign Affairs committee, reported on a meeting with Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif at Iran’s foreign ministry Sunday evening. Zarif updated the parliamentarians on the recent round of talks in Geneva and on Iran’s strategy for the upcoming round set to commence in Geneva this Wednesday.
According to Asfari, Iran’s halting of uranium enrichment and the closure of the nuclear plant in Fordo and the heavy water reactor in Arak are “not on the agenda of either side.” Iran, Asfari was told in the meeting, would negotiate based on “Iran’s pride.”

Iranian dissidents say Iran has built secret new nuclear site

An exiled Iranian opposition group said on Monday it had information about an underground nuclear site being built in Iran and that this was among a number of secret venues for an atomic bomb program.
The National Council of Resistance of Iran exposed Iran's uranium enrichment plant at Natanz and a heavy-water facility at Arak in 2002. But analysts say the NCRI has a mixed track record and a clear agenda of regime change in Tehran.

23 killed in attack on Iran's embassy in Beirut

Two suicide bombings struck near the Iranian Embassy in the Lebanese capital of Beirut on Tuesday, killing 23 people, including the Iranian cultural attache.
The mid-morning blasts hit Beirut's upscale neighborhood of Janah, a stronghold of the Iranian-backed Shiite Muslim Hezbollah group. One explosion blew out the large black main gate of the Iranian mission, damaging the three-story facility.

Hanegbi shoots down Iranian claims that Israel behind Beirut blasts

Hanegbi said that it was quite humorous that a country that has perpetuated terror around the world, now is blaming others.
His comments came after Al Jazeera reported that "the Iranian ambassador in Lebanon, who escaped from the attack uninjured, is blaming Israel for the attack."

Beirut bombing sees Iran drawn deeper into Lebanon quagmire

Evidently, however, even such stringent security precautions — introduced at potential Iranian targets as well — could not thwart Tuesday’s bombings. The Iranians are themselves now learning the bitter lesson they taught Israel: the combination of explosives and a highly motivated terrorist make the suicide bomber a devastating and hard-to-stop weapon.

Group behind Beirut bombing has fired rockets at Israel

The Abdullah Azzam Brigade, the al-Qaeda-affiliated group that claimed responsibility for Tuesday’s deadly attack on the Iranian embassy in Beirut, has threatened in the past to launch an offensive against Israel.

Why Has the U.N. Given Assad a Free Pass on Mass Murder?

During the past year, the United Nations' chief relief agency has routinely withheld from the public vital details of the Bashar al-Assad regime's systematic campaign to block humanitarian assistance to Syrian civilians. This silence has infuriated human rights advocates, who believe that greater public exposure of Assad's actions would increase political pressure on the Syrian government to allow the international community to help hundreds of thousands of ordinary Syrians who are trapped in the line of fire.
Instead, the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) -- which oversees international relief efforts in Syria -- has relied on low-key, behind-the-scenes diplomacy to quietly persuade the Syrian regime to open the aid floodgates. So far, critics say, the strategy has been ineffective. Worse, it provides a measure of political cover to the Assad regime as it carries out mass starvation and slaughter, these critics contend.

UN Watch: At UN, Syria's murderous regime compares Israelis to Nazis

Jews help Syria’s innocent victims in Bulgaria

Unable to handle the growing number of refugees, the Bulgarian authorities are helpless to offer anything more than overcrowded camps in poor condition with little medical care or food.
“We count on external assistance,” admitted Bulgarian Prime Minister Plamen Oresharski during a meeting with Jewish Canadian philanthropist, pop musician/jingle writer Yank Barry on November 13. Driven by personal ties to Bulgaria and his humanitarian mission, Barry is among the most recent contributors to join the relief effort to aid the Syrian refugees in Bulgaria, the European Union’s least wealthy member.

‘Egypt signs missile deal with Russia’

The head of Russia’s state-controlled industrial holding company says Moscow has signed a deal to provide Egypt with air defense missile systems.
Monday’s statement by Russian Technologies chief Sergei Chemezov followed last week’s trip to Egypt by Russia’s foreign and defense ministries.

US to Train Libyan Forces As Militias Ravage Tripoli

On Sunday, following heavy violence in Tripoli, a senior US military official revealed plans to train up to 7,000 members of Libya's security and special operations forces, according to Al Arabiya.
Aside from training thousands of conventional forces, special operations forces will be trained to conduct counter-terror operations, according to Admiral William McRaven, head of the U.S. military's Special Operations Command.

Turkey's secularists alarmed over rise of Islamic 'moralism'

Tension between religious and secular elites has long been one of the underlying fault lines in the predominantly Muslim but constitutionally secular republic, forged from the ruins of an Ottoman theocracy by Ataturk 90 years ago.
But a stream of provocative comments from Erdogan, who is expected to stand for president in elections next year, has heightened accusations of religiously-motivated interference in private life and exacerbated secularists' sense of siege.
Erdogan suggested this month that rules could be drawn up to stop male and female students living together, one ruling party official suggesting such unregulated cohabitation could be used to harbor criminals.

Ma'an reports:

A Palestinian fighter was killed and four others were injured Tuesday morning in an explosion in Tal al-Hawa neighborhood of Gaza City.

Gaza medical sources confirmed to Ma'an that Muhammad al-Bahloul died shortly after he was evacuated to Shifa Hospital in Gaza City.

Medics added that four other fighters sustained minor to moderate wound.

Security sources in Gaza confirmed that the explosion was accidental and not an Israeli strike.

Some reports said Bahloul was a bodyguard for top Hamas official Mahmoud Zahar.

The Al Qassam website says that al-Bahloul, 35, was killed "during a jihad mission." The Hamas terror movement beseeched Allah to allow him to be considered a martyr so he can reap his heavenly rewards.

Allah had no comment.

BDS leader explains how the movement is meant to manipulate Western liberals

The Badil Center, a Palestinian Arab organization that is a major force behind the BDS movement, has published an extensive analysis in Jadaliyya magazine of their perspective on its progress and shortcomings over the past eight years.

The magazine reprints what appears to be a seminal 2011 piece by Nimer Sultany of SOAS in London, one of the theoreticians behind today's BDS movement.

A careful reading of his article reveals the pure hypocrisy that underpins the entire anti-Israel movement.

Sultany brings up three points and potential pitfalls about BDS.

His first point is about the role of pacifism and violence in Palestinian Arab discourse:

Palestinian history oscillates between two dogmas: the new dogma of nonviolence and the old dogma of violence and armed struggle. ...Given its apparent failure to achieve its declared objective, armed struggle has given way to nonviolence, which has become more fashionable today since it resonates with Western perspectives. Given that stereotypes cast Palestinians as violent, aggressive, and irrational Arabs or Muslims, Palestinians are forced to declare their pacifism before being admitted to the world of legitimate discourse or given a hearing of their views.

...But nonviolence should not now become the new dogma. Westerners ask, “Where is the Palestinian Gandhi?” They ignore the fact that Western practice and discourse have always vindicated violent resistance to unjust foreign occupiers. Thus, it is hypocritical for Westerners to dismiss violent means altogether in the Palestinian case.

...The legitimacy of the struggle and the justness of the demands need not necessarily correlate with the character of the means. The fact is that violent and nonviolent tactics have always co-existed as forms of resistance and they are likely to do so in the future. Therefore, in order to choose nonviolent means, one need not necessarily be a pacifist. The choice of the means depends on historical and political circumstances; they need not become the end. The means should not be deployed for their own sake but for the purpose of achieving noble political goals. The ability of violent or non-violent means to achieve them in a concrete, prudential form should be constantly critiqued and re-examined.

So while BDSers swear up and down that they are against violence, we see that the truth is quite the opposite. The movement is meant to sway Westerners, but it is not meant to mirror how Palestinian Arabs think. Amongst themselves, violence is considered quite acceptable - but not prudent at this time. Next year, it is possible that violence might come back into vogue. He even refers to the current Palestinian Arab pretense of nonviolence as "fashionable."

There is no morality here except the "noble" goal of destroying the Jewish state, and for that, all means are on the table. Pretending that they embrace non-violence for moral reasons is simply a scam to fool clueless Western liberals.

Sultany's second point is about international law:

The boycott movement speaks the language of human rights and international law. It is intended to pressure Israel to abide by international law. By doing so, it risks falling into the trap identified by critical legal scholars. The risk has two aspects. First, there is a danger in conflating law with justice; there is no intrinsic connection between law and justice. The gap between them may not be apparent to those who equate the attainment of justice with the application of law. Second is the belief that applying international law can produce self-evident, concrete consequences; this belief presupposes that applying law is a mechanical operation. But law-application involves inevitably normative interpretations that are not independent of power relations and hegemonic understandings. In addition, law (whether local or international) is not a monolithic entity nor a gapless system. Rather, it contains gaps, ambiguities, and contradictions...

This is not to say that the language of universal human rights and international law should be rejected or that it lacks a positive value. I only wish to caution that this rather limited discourse could produce unintended consequences. One should be cognizant of the detrimental ramifications of this discourse.

Sultany understands that while the anti-Israel movement uses the language of international law and human rights, they don't really mean it - if they can be interpreted in ways that is detrimental to the cause.

If, for example, the definition of "refugee" is standardized so that Palestinian Arabs have the same definition as the rest of the world, that would be quite supportable under international law - but it would be catastrophic for a movement whose intent for decades has been to use millions of people as pawns to help destroy Israel. The same can be said for the definition of "occupation" - if Gaza or Areas A is not occupied, the Israel-haters lose a great deal of their rhetorical power. Ditto for the mythical "right of return," one of BDS' cornerstones, which has no basis in international law in these circumstances.

Beyond that, Sultany makes it clear that human rights and international law have no value to Palestinian Arab nationalist thought. They are only concerned with what they call "justice." And who decides whether justice is served? Why, they are! And there can be no justice, in their minds, while Israel exists.

This is not compatible with international law, and Sultany knows it. But he figures that using the fig leaf of international law, with luck, can weaken Israel enough that the "justice" part of the equation can then have a chance of succeeding.

Sultany is saying, in effect, that while they use the language of international law and human rights, it is just a scam to fool clueless Western liberals. To be sure, they work tirelessly to ensure that NGOs adhere to their definitions of terms like "occupation", but in the back of their minds they know that international and humanitarian law is not nearly as supportive of their movement as they pretend it is. Sultany is warning the BDSers that they just might end up on the wrong end of the law before they finish their goal of making Jews as weak and marginalized as Christians are in the Middle East.

His third warning is about being too serious about boycotting everything that is "Zionist:"

Transforming every aspect of the political struggle to a boycott-orientation reduces the range of political means and vocabulary. Not every adverse discourse or initiative should be addressed through the boycott prism. Surely, these initiatives, to the extent that they warrant criticism, can and should be critiqued. However, the discourse of boycott is inapplicable when the object of the critique is not a state-sponsored activity, nor an Israeli or foreign institution involved in sustaining the occupation militarily or economically. The boycott campaign should be based on credible evidence of targeted institutions’ role in sustaining the apartheid regime’s practices.

Additionally, boycott should not be seen as merely the manifestation of an unguided, blind moral outrage. Its primary purpose should neither be moral preaching nor vengeance and punishment. Rather, it should be applied as a political tool for achieving political ends through political mobilization of activists, constituencies, and consumers. Therefore, there should be some considerations of efficacy. For boycott to be effective it should not be reduced to trigger-happy tactics. If one cries wolf all the time, one risks losing credibility and political currency.

Overplaying the boycott card can discredit it, even when directed against worthy targets. ...Consider the example of the New York Times which is blatantly pro-Israel; it does not follow that it should be boycotted by a writer commissioned to represent a pro-Palestinian position.

The argument can be extended to make sure that Apple or Google or Microsoft aren't boycotted, since that would be counterproductive. As he says explicitly, boycotting Zionist products is not a moral position but a political tool. That's why Sodastream and Max Brenner are perfect targets but Intel isn't.

Yet BDS positions itself to the West as if it were a moral movement, using moral arguments!

For the third time, Sultany is saying that BDS is a scam to fool clueless Western liberals by using language they can identify with, while the movement itself is actually anti-liberalism. It has no ethical problem with murdering Jews, it is willing to discard international law if that contradicts its idea of "justice," and it couches its goal in terms of a morality that it explicitly discards.

This is not an essay that BDSers want thoughtful Western liberals to read.

(h/t Spotlighting)

Things not looking good on Iran

Robert Satloff in Politico writes:

The current crisis is already one of the biggest U.S.-Israel blowups, ever—and it could get worse before it gets better.

Not since Menachem Begin trashed Ronald Reagan’s 1982 peace plan has Israel so publicly criticized a major U.S. diplomatic initiative. In a rousing speech in Jerusalem on Nov. 10, Netanyahu even called on leaders of American Jewry to use their influence to stop what he called a “bad” Iran deal.

Never has a U.S. secretary of state taken to a podium in an Arab capital, proclaim his pro-Israel bona fides and then specifically caution the prime minister of Israel to butt out of ongoing U.S. diplomatic efforts and save his critique for after a deal is inked. That is what John Kerry did in a remarkable Nov. 11 news conference in Abu Dhabi, standing next to the foreign minister of the United Arab Emirates.

And not in recent memory has the spokesperson for the president of the United States, knowing that Israel and many of its American friends have criticized the administration’s Iran policy, accused detractors of leading a “march to war,” thereby opening a Pandora’s box of hateful recrimination that will be difficult to close.

Israel’s critique of U.S. Iran policy has three key aspects.

First, in terms of strategy, Israel worries that the administration quietly dropped its longtime insistence that Iran fulfill its U.N. Security Council obligation to suspend all enrichment activities and that an end to enrichment is no longer even a goal of these negotiations.

Second, in terms of tactics, Israel cheers the administration’s imposition of devastating sanctions on Iran but fears that the near-agreement in Geneva would have wasted the enormous leverage that sanctions have created in exchange for a deal that, at most, would cap Iran’s progress without any rollback of Iran’s uranium enrichment capabilities and no commitment to mothball the worrisome Arak plant, which could provide an alternative plutonium-based path to a nuclear weapon.

And third, operationally, Israel has complained that it was kept in the dark on details of the proposed Geneva deal—what was being offered to Tehran and what was being demanded of it—despite commitments from Washington to keep Jerusalem fully apprised.

These are weighty concerns and serious accusations. They deserve a full accounting. It is shameful to suggest that anyone who raises these questions prefers war to diplomacy. That is especially because each of these charges appears to have merit.

One would be hard-pressed, for example, to find a senior administration official saying that securing Iran’s full implementation of U.N. Security Council resolutions remains the goal of these negotiations, let alone an American “red line.” Instead, officials have termed the pursuit of suspension a “maximalist” position and prefer to cite the president’s commitment to prevent Iran from developing a nuclear weapon, a far looser formulation that could allow Iran a breakout capacity. Rejecting the Iranians’ claim to a “right to enrich,” as the administration apparently did in Geneva, is important, but it is not the same as demanding that they suspend enrichment.

The signals from the US get even worse.

Yesterday, John Kerry said, "I have no specific expectations with respect to the negotiations in Geneva except that we will negotiate in good faith and we will try to get a first-step agreement and hope that Iran will understand the importance of coming there prepared to create a document that can prove to the world that this is a peaceful program."

In the first year of the Obama administration, statements coming from top officials showed that the US believed that Iran has a nuclear weapons program. On May 24, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (CJCS), Admiral Michael Mullen, said “Well, I believe then and I still believe that Iran's strategic objective is to achieve nuclear weapons, and that that path continues. Their leadership is committed to it. They conducted a missile test this last week that was successful, which continues to improve their missile delivery system and capability. Their intent seems very clear to me, and I'm one who believes if they achieve that objective, that it is incredibly destabilizing for the region. And I think eventually for the world."

Now, Kerry seems to be saying that Iran only needs to produce a document that can prove it has no military dimensions to its nuclear program. It is an invitation to Iran to show that it can hide its activities. (This has been a key IAEA requirement for years, and Iran has never shown interest.)

Even more troubling, by backing off on demands to suspend the enrichment program, the US has already weakened UN Security Council Chapter VII resolutions calling on Iran to do exactly that.

By contrast, the Bush administration - while also willing to talk with Iran and willing to allow it to have a civilian nuclear program - always insisted that enrichment must stop.

There is nothing wrong with talks, but here the US seems to be abandoning its long-held positions while Iran has not budged an inch. It is hardly how a superpower should be acting.

(h/t Zvi, Stan)

Brandeis cuts ties with Al Quds University (UPDATE x2)

Last week we reported this story, where Brandeis University tried to justify the Fascist-style Islamic Jihad rally on the campus of its partner Al Quds University

After another few days of pressure from Tom Gross (who broke the story) and Adam Kredo of the Washington Free Beacon who repeatedly tried to get statements from Brandeis officials, Brandeis finally reacted properly:

Brandeis University President Frederick Lawrence announced today that Brandeis has suspended its partnership with Al-Quds University effective immediately. Brandeis will re-evaluate the relationship as future events may warrant.

The decision stems from recent events at Al-Quds University, including a campus demonstration on Nov. 5 and a statement about the demonstration, which the president of Al-Quds University issued last night.

The Nov. 5 demonstration on the Al-Quds campus involved demonstrators wearing black military gear, armed with fake automatic weapons, and who marched while waving flags and raising the traditional Nazi salute. The demonstration took place in the main square of the Al-Quds campus, which was surrounded by banners depicting images of “martyred” suicide bombers.

Immediately after he received reports of the demonstration, President Lawrence contacted Al-Quds President Sari Nusseibeh and requested that he issue an unequivocal condemnation of the demonstrations. President Lawrence also requested that the condemnation be published in both Arabic and English.

Last night (Nov. 17), President Nusseibeh sent an email to President Lawrence with an English translation of a statement posted in Arabic on the Al-Quds web site.

Unfortunately, the Al-Quds statement is unacceptable and inflammatory. While Brandeis has an unwavering commitment to open dialogue on difficult issues, we are also obliged to recognize intolerance when we see it, and we cannot – and will not – turn a blind eye to intolerance. As a result, Brandeis is suspending its partnership with Al-Quds University effective immediately. We will reevaluate our relationship with Al-Quds based on future events.

The Al Quds letter is something else:

My Dear Students of Al-Quds University,

The university is often subjected to vilification campaigns by Jewish extremists with the purpose of discrediting its reputation as a prestigious academic institution with a unique, humane calling: to strive to instill noble values in its students; to spread the spirit of democracy and openness toward other world cultures; and to present the genuine face of the Palestinian people, calling for peace against the extremism and violence to which we ourselves are subjected as a people denied our rights under occupation.

These extreme elements spare no effort to exploit some rare but nonetheless damaging events or scenes which occur on the campus of Al Quds University, such as fist-fighting between students, or some students making a mock military display. These occurrences allow some people to capitalize on events in ways that misrepresent the university as promoting inhumane, anti-Semitic, fascist, and Nazi ideologies. Without these ideologies, there would not have been the massacre of the Jewish people in Europe; without the massacre, there would not have been the enduring Palestinian catastrophe.

As occurred recently, these opportunists are quick to describe the Palestinians as a people undeserving of freedom and independence, and as a people who must be kept under coercive control and occupation. They cite these events as evidence justifying their efforts to muster broad Jewish and western opinion to support their position. This public opinion, in turn, sustains the occupation, the extension of settlements and the confiscation of land, and prevents Palestinians from achieving our freedom.

This letter is insane. No one said anything close to what is claimed, and the letter downplays the antisemitic and terror supporting march as merely a "mock-military display" which is just as objectionable as fistfights on campus. (And there have been several such Islamic Jihad demonstrations on campus, all done with Al Qud approval. They are hardly "rare" nor are they rogue.)

Notice also how, while Al Quds downplays the Holocaust, calling it a mere "massacre" as if a hundred or so Jews were killed. But that is not the worst outcome of Nazi ideologies; no, the worst is that the genocide of Jews caused the Nakba in the sick minds of the leaders of Al Quds.

UPDATE: I had written that the letter says nothing about respecting other groups or religions, however it does have some language that does call for that.

UPDATE 2: I cannot find either the English or Arabic announcement on Al Quds' home page.

The "right" to enriching uranium doesn't exist. Even in ALL CAPS.

Salon has an article by Patrick L. Smith, called "Chomsky is Right," excoriating the New York Times for its use of scare quotes concerning Iran's "right" to enrich uranium:

Complex story, but we can take care of it simply. Iran wants a nuclear program, and this includes the capacity to enrich uranium. This is Iran’s right under international law. Washington and the major European powers do not want Iran to have such a program because they worry Iran will eventually build a nuclear weapon. The talks in Geneva went sour because the U.S. and the Europeans demanded that Iran surrender its right.

O.K. Here is the lead in the Times report from the City of Diplomacy:

The Iranian government’s insistence on formal recognition of its “right” to enrich uranium emerged as a major obstacle, diplomats said Sunday.

Two big problems. Nothing emerged as an obstacle in Geneva other than Secretary of State Kerry’s duplicity, given that his Iranian counterpart, Mohammad Javad Zarif, now charges him with misleading Iran as to demands to be made on the enrichment question. Iran has been quite clear all along: Enrichment under law will never get on the table. Zarif would have skipped the trip had he known Kerry’s plans; Kerry knew this.

Then the quotation marks. With them, the Times proposes to deprive Iran of its statutory rights so that Washington can lie to us as well as to the Iranians.

Smith, not quite satisfied that his proof by assertion is adequate to the task of convincing Salon's readers that Iran has the right to enrich uranium, decides to prove it BY USING ALL CAPS:

ONE: IRAN HAS AN UNAMBIGUOUS RIGHT UNDER LAW TO A NUCLEAR PROGRAM, INCLUDING ENRICHMENT, EVEN IF THIS MAKES IT (AS IT WILL) NEARLY CAPABLE OF WEAPONIZING. READ YOUR DAILY NEWS DOSAGE WITH THIS IN MIND.

TWO. THERE IS ZERO EVIDENCE THAT IRAN DESIRES A NUCLEAR WEAPON, AND DECADES OF POLICY TO INDICATE IT PREFERS A NUCLEAR-FREE MIDDLE EAST. THERE IS ONLY ONE REASON IRAN WOULD CHANGE ITS MIND: ISRAEL’S NEVER-MENTIONED ARSENAL OF NUKES. THE MOTIVE WOULD BE DETERRENCE, AND MOST OF US WORSHIPPED AT THE ALTAR OF DETERRENCE WELL ENOUGH DURING THE COLD WAR. IRAN HAS SIGNED THE NUCLEAR NON-PROLIFERATION TREATY; ISRAEL DECLINES TO DO SO.

Well, he's really emphatic about it, so it must be true!

So what does international law say about the right to enrich uranium?

The Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty says

Nothing in this Treaty shall be interpreted as affecting the inalienable right of all the Parties to the Treaty to develop research, production and use of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes without discrimination and in conformity with Articles I and II of this Treaty.

Very simply, this means that if a country can get properly enriched fuel for their peaceful nuclear program without enriching it themselves, they don't have the "right" to enrich it. It doesn't mean that they are necessarily barred from doing so, but it is clearly not a "right."

Given that the entire purpose of the NPT is to limit the possibility of nuclear weapons development, and in Iran's case there is a serious concern that enrichment would lead to nuclear weapons, it is even clearer that there is no such "right" to enrich uranium. South Africa, Spain and Mexico each have peaceful nuclear programs without domestic enrichment programs.

That's the plain English interpretation of the NPT. It isn't too difficult to figure out.

As far as Smith's second emphasized statement, it doesn't quite explain why Iran is developing missiles that can carry nuclear warheads. But even without that, in Smith's short screed, he admits that Iran might want to create nuclear weapons to "deter" Israel, as if Israel has been threatening Iran with nuclear weapons. Which means that he admits that Iran may want to build a nuclear weapon!

Sorry, I meant to say PATRICK L. SMITH ADMITS THAT IRAN MAY WANT TO BUILD A NUCLEAR WEAPON!

11/18 Links Pt2: Can we mention the “I” word?, The Iranians behind the Israeli rescue missions

From Ian:

Can we mention the “I” word?

When Arabs were “incited” to murder in Hebron in 1929, was it hatred for Israel? Or was it perhaps hatred for Jews they were incited with?
Israel has built schools, hospitals, infrastructure and dramatically advanced the living conditions of the Arabs in the disputed territories. This receives no thanks and was delivered in the face of unremitting terror attacks. Without the strong security measures, how many more Jews would have been killed?
But the more Jews do, the more Jews give, the greater the hatred of Jews becomes. It’s a kind of jealousy: each one of our successes highlights their failures. Is it time to study, honestly, the contemporary theology that provided the basis for the indoctrination of this young murderer?
We can never surrender enough to placate this foe. We’re locked in an endless war. That doesn’t mean we have to give up living here or being proud, independent Jews. But we must never let ourselves fall asleep thinking we’re safe.

Danon: Stop Funding PA Until it Stops Funding Terrorism

Danon noted that the aid money which the PA receives is being used in large grants to terrorists, saying "the world thinks it's funding peace, but the Palestinians are funding terror."
The Deputy Defense Minister added that "the world needs to stop the money going to the PA until it stops funding terror."

Honest Reporting: New York Times Photo Outrage

For starters, it is ten paragraphs down before we even learn the details of the horrific attack on Atias while he slept on a bus in Afula. The majority of the article is devoted, despite the headline “Attack on Israeli Worsens Tensions With Palestinians,” to issues surrounding settlements.
But just to ensure against any notion that an Israeli could be the victim, the NY Times chose this photo to illustrate the story:
Not a photo of Eden Atias. Not a photo of his mother mourning the loss of a son.
We are treated instead to an image of the mother of the terrorist responsible for murdering Eden Atias, presumably mourning the fact that her son is now in Israeli custody.
In the eyes of the New York Times, Israeli victims of terror are mere footnotes to a one-sided narrative of Palestinian suffering and Israeli responsibility for that suffering.

Soldier who arrested Afula terrorist honored

The Israeli soldier who apprehended the terrorist who stabbed to death 19-year-old soldier Eden Atias last Wednesday has been commended for his action.
Kfir infantry brigade commander Col. Asher Ben-Lulu presented 2nd Lt. Yitzhak Maimon with a certificate of merit on Sunday evening for the courage he displayed at the scene of the Afula bus station terror attack.

The Return Of Shirley Temper

Everyone’s favorite palestinian propaganda child is back, although she takes a back seat to a smaller child who seems to be reciting a scripted poem (perhaps Temper junior?)
Notice how not frightened the children look (Shirley smiles at the camera at one point). You would think if the IDF soldiers were really the big, bad wolves Shirley and company have in the past tried to portray them as, the girls would not seem so comfortable.

IDF Blog: Hamas in Comics: Terror and Tyranny in Gaza

Since the day of its creation, Hamas has vilified the Jewish people, indoctrinated Gaza’s children and attacked Israel with suicide bombings and rockets. In November 2012, we were left with no choice but to stop Hamas’ terror through Operation Pillar of Defense. One year later, we show you the terrorist organization like you’ve never seen it before.

“Concentration Camp” Gaza Now Manufacturing Its Own Cars

Welcome to Gaza, the world’s only “concentration camp” which manufactures its own cars.

The Guardian is forced to correct a second false allegation by Antony Loewenstein

Recently, an alert CiF Watch reader noted a second correction to the same Loewenstein essay. Here’s the original passage:

Another front page story in the paper last week claimed that Hebrew University is a bastion of Jewish and Arab co-operation, yet ignored the litany of examples of the institution repressing Palestinian rights.
Now, that passage smearing Hebrew University has been amended,

Six hundred people at a meeting better held back in the Middle East

Hundreds of Muslims attending a community meeting in western Sydney were warned yesterday that they should refuse to co-operate with Australian governments and their agencies, including ASIO and the federal police.
The annual conference of Hizb ut-Tahrir heard speakers say the federal government had a covert plan to marginalise and suppress activist and traditionalist Islam under the guise of engagement and fostering harmony with moderates in the community…

Does Guardian columnist Michael Cohen regularly follow the hate site, Mondoweiss?

Mondoweiss also hosts the musings of Max Blumenthal, author the ‘Israel haters guide to the universe’ praised by such notable ‘activists’ as Gilad Atzmon and David Duke.
The politics of Michael Cohen have been revealed in previous ‘CiF’ essays – where he once suggested that terrorist attacks on Israelis may actually ‘help’ the peace process – but his legitimization of Mondoweiss suggests an especially troubling dynamic whereby antisemitic commentary typically associated with the extreme right garners increasing respectability by those who consider themselves ‘progressive’ voices on the Middle East.

BBC perpetuates themes from Operation Pillar of Cloud

Notably, the casualty figures cited above from Hamas and OHCHR sources suggest that fewer combatants – and hence, more civilians – were killed during the conflict than do figures from other sources. Clearly, the Hamas claim that the casualties were “mostly civilians” is not credible information and it is inappropriate for the BBC to promote it without independent verification.
It is evident even from this short introduction that the BBC did not carry out effective post-event examination of its coverage of Operation Pillar of Cloud and hence the same inaccurate themes are still being promoted one year on.

German collector wants his priceless trove of stolen art back

Der Spiegel said a reporter spent several days interviewing the collector while he traveled from his home in Munich to visit a doctor in a nearby city last week.
Officials are investigating whether Gurlitt may have “misappropriated” the pictures or committed tax offenses in connection with them. However, a spokesman for Augsburg prosecutors, who are handling the case, told The Associated Press last week that Germany’s 30-year statute of limitations may prove to be a stumbling block.

Simon Weisenthal Center Exposes European anti-Semitism

Rabbi Abraham Cooper, Associate Dean of the Simon Wiesenthal Center, raised the findings of Manfred Gerstenfeld’s book, Demonizing Israel and the Jews with Philippine Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, Archbishop of Manila on Wednesday.
The Cardinal was an important candidate in the recent Papal election and may become the first Asian Pope.

IDF treats over 300 people a day in the Philippines

On November 17, The IDF team based installed a water cistern on a nearby island that had no access to water.
The field hospital, which is attached to a local hospital, has incubators for the premature babies.
“I am not sure what would have happened if we had not been around,” said Lt.-Col. Dr. Ofer Merin, medical manager of the field hospital.
Merin repeatedly told the 148 officers and soldiers, doctors, nurses, lab technicians, psychiatrists, social psychologists, search and rescue workers, that “we are here to answer the call for help.”

The Iranians behind the Israeli rescue missions

And just days ago, Colonel Ramtin Sebti another Iranian commander in the IDF, commanded an Israeli rescue mission of a different kind: to the Philippines to help the victims of typhoon Haiyan. The mission consists of 148 specialists, a field hospital, 100 tons of humanitarian and medical aid.
Colonel Sebti, originally from Tehran’s Yousef Abad neighborhood, belongs to my generation of Iranian immigrants. He left Iran 26 years ago in 1987 at the age of 15, and was smuggled across the Iranian border to Pakistan, much like many of my school friends. Today he heads one of the most coveted forces in the Israeli army, the National Search and Rescue Unit. This unit is in charge of rescuing victims of missile attacks as well as natural disasters such as earthquakes and typhoons. It has taken part in rescue operations in places such as Haiti, Kenya, Turkey and now the Philippines.
Name me another country where Iranians have reached such high positions of power.

Apple reportedly buying Israel’s PrimeSense for $345 million

Apple is buying Israel’s PrimeSense for $345 million, the Calcalist business daily reported Sunday. The deal is expected to be reported officially by both companies within the next two weeks, the report said.
This is the second time a deal, or near-deal, between the two companies has been reported. Last July, it was reported that PrimeSense and Apple were in intense negotiations over a possible Apple acquisition. Sunday’s report was not immediately confirmed.

Israel Ranks Second on Global Dynamism Index Science and Technology Sector

Israel has been ranked second in the Global Dynamism Index science and technology sector of one of the world’s largest worldwide accountancy firms with a mark of 62.7. Israel moved up one place to second from third, lagging only behind South Korea with a mark of 64.2. Israel was ranked ahead of Finland (62.6), Sweden (58.8), and Japan (58.7).

U.S. Jewish Groups Shifting Resources to New Israeli Market Index Fund

Major Jewish organizations are investing heavily in a recently launched index fund that tracks companies with a significant Israeli presence, prompting speculation that literally billions of dollars may – according to Steven Schoenfeld, the founder and CEO of the BlueStar Israel Global Index fund – “be brought into productive investment in Israel”

From NPR's Emily Harris earlier this month:

Before I moved to Jerusalem to cover Israel, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, I asked friends and acquaintances what they wanted to know about these places.

Everyone knew something about the long-running conflict, the repeat political players, and the ancient religions and the historic significance of the land. But people had plenty of questions, too.

A sixth-grader asked me to find out what had happened to a Palestinian boy he'd seen in a documentary. That led to this story and convinced me that the combined curiosity of many is a lot more powerful than me on my own.

So, I want more questions.

What do you wonder about Israel or the Palestinian territories? About the food, the fun, conflict, changes, history, habits?

I can't promise everything you ask will turn into a story, but if it does I will let you know. (And I might come back and ask you a question about your question.)

Please click here to tell us what you're wondering about. Please include your contact information. Or put your question out on social media with #whatiwonder.

So what stories should we sent Emily?

Should she interview the children who are in official Palestinian Authority TV videos who are calling Jews "barbaric monkeys, wretched pigs"?

Maybe a report on the PA giving high paying jobs to convicted murderers?

Perhaps a followup with the family of Asher and Yonatan Palmer? along with the news that stone throwers can and do kill people?

Or an interview with the couple who were attacked with a Molotov cocktail recently?

Maybe a feature on the Temple Mount Sifting Project, with information about how priceless antiquities were destroyed by the Islamic Waqf and UNESCO has nothing bad to say about it?

Maybe a lighthearted piece on how many times Mahmoud Abbas threatened to resign.

Or an interview with Arabs who work happily in Israeli-owned stores in the territories.

Poor Emily seems to be running low on ideas. She needs some help.

(h/t Irene)

Hamas leader's granddaughter in Israel for medical treatment

Pal24.net reports that Ismail Haniyeh's one-year old granddaughter is being treated for a serious condition - in an Israeli hospital.

The website quotes Haniyeh's son Abdul Salam Haniyeh on Facebook sharing the news, saying that she suffered from "serious infections in the digestive tract that affected the nervous system."

She was first treated in the "Victory" hospital in Gaza, where Haniyeh visited her.

If I am understanding the article correctly, it may be too late. The girl is apparently in "clinical death" and Abdul said that the "skies were crying for her," a reference to recent rain.

(h/t Spotlighting)