Forward article justifies smiley photos at Arafat's grave

Elisheva Goldberg at The Forward says "Harvard Group Was Right To Visit Arafat's Grave."

After dismissing critics of the trip, including me, as "far right blogs," she misses the point completely:

The point is that allowing students to engage in conversation on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict with Palestinians themselves is still taboo among the American Jewish establishment. And it’s high time that changed.

First, let’s establish the obvious: These Harvard students were well within their rights — on purely touristic grounds — to visit even the tomb of a man as reprehensible as Arafat. Imagine going on an educational tour of Berlin and not stopping at Hitler’s bunker. Or trying to see the sites of a conflict like the American Civil War without taking a look at the Confederate Memorial Carving of Jefferson Davis, Robert E. Lee and Stonewall Jackson. Hitler killed 6 million Jews and 5 million others, but no one would argue that your visit to his bunker was meant to “honor” him. Davis, Lee and Jackson were considered war criminals in the North in their time, but no one is going to argue that you’re embracing their side of the Civil War at their monument. These students were not “paying homage” to Arafat. They were visiting a crucial site in the history of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Goldberg's analogies are obviously bogus. The analogy to Arafat's grave is not Hitler's bunker; it would be a shrine to Hitler maintained by neo-Nazis. Contrariwise, the analogy to Hitler's bunker would be the room in the Muqata where Arafat made his decisions, which would be a quite appropriate place to visit.

Beyond that, her dishonesty is transparent. The smiling photo at Arafat's grave can in no way be compared to visiting a historic site. There is nothing historic about that gravesite; it is propaganda to make Arafat look like a leader of a nation and not the murderer of thousands. Even worse, thousands of Israelis  today have lost friends and loved ones because of the policy of this monster, still barely cold in the grave. It is not merely tasteless to pose at his grave, it is offensive. (Oh, I forgot. Arabs and Muslims are allowed to be offended in today's world, Jews are supposed to be better than that.)

This photo (detail below) of students smiling, clearly without having been told ahead of time how heinous Arafat was, is the problem. If they would have known, and known how much it hurts Jews to honor such a monster, they would never, ever have smiled. The students clearly were not told ahead of time how posing in front of his grave is hugely inappropriate. The Israeli-born Zionist student leaders of the trip should have refused to enter the building, and explained exactly why they refused, while allowing the students to make their own decisions.

That would have been educational. A mindless selfie-type image is not. And from what I can tell, the leaders of the trip are smiling right along with the students, despite their later claims that they "discussed how difficult it was for them to stand by the grave of a man so evil in their eyes." Sorry, I'm not buying it.

I never said that the students shouldn't hear the Palestinian Arab side of the story. On the contrary, from the mainstream media that often is all they hear; a trip like this is meant to show the Zionist side of the story. Even so, for this audience it would be entirely appropriate to hear a lecture from a Fatah leader in Ramallah.

Goldberg's embrace of open dialogue also rings hollow. Would she encourage the same students to visit and listen to the right-wing Jews in Hebron? Is she that liberal? Or does her embrace of seeing all sides of the story have some limits, where Jews who want to live in their ancestral homes are shunned but Arabs who want to ethnically cleanse them are to be embraced?

Moreover, for her to be consistent, she shouldn't only say she wants to see the undergraduates visit Hebron, but to also visit the grave of Baruch Goldstein. No doubt she is  more offended at that idea than visiting the grave of a far worse mass murderer. I would say that such a visit is inappropriate, but Goldberg can't do so easily without exposing her hypocrisy.

Perhaps this "far right blog" is more accepting of people hearing all sides of the story than progressive, liberal Forward columnists are.

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Israel is just too darn democratic for the Left

John Podhoretz wrote a great article in Commentary this month that was paywalled, but the Jewish Press republished it:

David Landau, one of the lions of Israeli journalism, published a stunningly revealing article in Haaretz at the beginning of February – one that gave perfect voice to the Israeli left’s disgust with the nation’s own democratic system.

Due to the efforts of U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, Landau wrote, “the dream of Israel’s peace camp is coming true.” The dream itself is the “most yearned-for and most oft-repeated” wish, though Landau cautioned it is only spoken of “in private.”

There’s a twist, though: The dream, it turns out, isn’t a Palestinian state. A state is the culmination of the dream. No, the dream is “that friendly foreign governments summon up the political will to force Israel to end the occupation at last, in the interests of its own future as well as in the interests of world peace.”

Israeli leftists “do not dare to say it publicly,” Landau wrote, because they have been cowed into submission by the political rules of Israel’s “semi-theocratic, colonialist democracy.” The right has successfully arrogated to itself “the power to delineate the rules of public debate and the proprieties of political usage. ‘Zionism,’ ‘Judaism,’ and above all ‘patriotism’ are at the mercy of the right, chiefly the religious right, for their definition.”

Amazing how that happened, really, given that the left dominates the Israeli media, the academy, and elite conversation in the country. But it has, and it has because of those darned voters. The left has “concluded, correctly, that to be seen or heard encouraging friendly foreign governments to take tough positions against the occupation – threatening, for instance, economic boycotts – would draw down domestic condemnation, because the public is fairly brainwashed by the usage and definitions of the right.”

Hard to imagine, isn’t it, that a political movement supporting economic boycotts of your own country might rain down condemnation on you within your own country! But such is the deep injustice that has been visited upon Landau and his friends. The “semi-theocratic, colonialist” monstrosity for which they express such loathing and disgust no longer turns to them for leadership. Fancy that!

So powerful has this “brainwashing” been that it has “enfeebled” Landau’s own camp and reduced it to “the constant need to hope and pray that Israel’s foreign friends will step in and rescue her at last, effectively imposing the peace camp’s policy on her, because the peace camp cannot seriously hope to win power in Israel based on that policy.”

Well, wonder of wonders, it may finally have happened. The posse may have arrived. And so, in Landau’s view, “the peace camp would do well to seize upon Secretary Kerry’s warnings as the moment when its dream of foreign support begins to come true and when domestic and international public debate can be pushed back into pragmatic parameters.”

Landau once reportedly told Condoleezza Rice when she was secretary of state that Israel needs to be “raped by the U.S.” for its own good. That was a disgusting way of revealing a deep truth about him, the Israeli left, and its J Street supporters in the United States. They don’t just want their own policies imposed on the body politic that has rejected them. They want it to hurt, too. They want Israel’s electorate humiliated, degraded, and violated for the sin of rejecting them and their pipe dream of peace.

It is not only the Israeli Left that disdains Israeli democracy. The entire purpose of J-Street is to influence US politicians to pressure Israel against the will of most Israelis.

Some of the European-funded NGOs in Israel are dedicated to influencing Israeli voters to change their minds.

I once had a very short Twitter conversation with an Israeli leftist who said that my opinions were worthless compared to hers because she lives in Israel and I do not. I answered along the lines of "I respect that. Therefore you are against having outside Leftist organizations trying to pressure Israel, right?"

She never responded.

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Iran fumes as Canada seizes Iranian assets for terror victims

From Iran's PressTV:

Iran has rejected a politically-motivated ruling by a Canadian court to seize more than USD 7 million of the Islamic Republic’s assets and properties.

Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Marzieh Afkham said on Saturday that Iran was not informed about the legal proceedings, adding that the court ruling has therefore “no legal value” to Iran.

An Ontario judge in Canada recently ordered the seizure of more than USD 7 million of assets and properties belonging to Iran over some plaintiffs alleging that the Islamic Republic funds terrorist groups.

“Given the approach of the Canadian government, it is crystal clear that the verdict is politically-motivated and such rulings have no legal value,” Afkham said, reminding the Ottawa government of its international commitment to protect diplomatic properties.

Pointing to Canada’s move to sever ties with Iran unilaterally, Afkham said under international law diplomatic properties have immunity, warning Ottawa of the legal repercussions of disrespecting international regulations.

The Iranian official stated that Iran, as a victim of terrorism, has always denounced this inhuman scourge.

Iran, as usual, is lying. As this National Post article shows, they were informed of the court case, and the assets being seized are not diplomatic properties. (Not to mention the obvious fact that Iran supports terror groups both monetarily and with weapons.)

[A]fter failing to defend itself in court, Tehran’s protest was too little, too late. Following last week’s judgment, sheriffs have been ordered to sell Iran’s properties, empty its bank accounts and divide the proceeds between several terror victims.

The groundbreaking court decision brought to an end four lawsuits filed in Ontario, Nova Scotia and British Columbia by terror victims seeking damages from Iran for training, arming and financing Hamas and Hezbollah.

The suits followed the enactment in 2012 of the Justice for Victims of Terrorism Act, which permitted those harmed by terrorists to seek damages from the state sponsors of their attackers. The government also amended the State Immunity Act to allow such lawsuits.

Only one of the plaintiffs is a Canadian, Vancouver dentist Sherri Wise, who was badly injured by a Hamas suicide bomber. The others are American terror victims who came to Canada to collect on judgments awarded by U.S. courts.

The Ontario court ruled in their favor last Monday, ordering sheriffs to seize a Scotiabank account worth $1.7-million controlled by Iranian diplomat Hamid Moharrami, and an RBC account with a balance of 333,000 euros controlled by Reza Shaker, the Iranian embassy’s chargé d’affaires.

The evidence “overwhelming establishes” that the money in the accounts was the property of Iran, the judge ruled. According to the Department of Foreign Affairs, Iran has 14 Canadian bank accounts holding at least $2.6-million.

Also to be sold, with the proceeds handed to the victims, is a building at 290 Sheppard Ave. W. in Toronto that is owned by Farhangeiran Inc., and another at 2 Robinson Ave, in Ottawa owned by The Mobin Foundation. Property records show the Toronto building was purchased in 2005 for $827,000. The Ottawa property was acquired in 2003 for $1 from Fatima Cultural Activities Inc., records show.

The “evidence overwhelmingly permits me to conclude that both properties are beneficially owned by Iran and constitute non-diplomatic assets of Iran in Canada,” the judge wrote. He said there was evidence the Ottawa property was linked to the Iranian Revolutionary Guards.

The assets are to be shared among the victims according to a deal worked out by their lawyers. The Iranian embassy and official residence in Ottawa are considered diplomatic property and therefore cannot be seized.

The Iranian Cultural Centre in Ottawa , one of the assets seized, looks nothing like a cultural center. It is more like a warehouse, behind a fence that says "Private Property".

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Apparently they did sponsor some programs on Canadian campuses before Canada expelled Iranian diplomats. More about that center can be seen here.

(h/t Josh K)

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Antisemitic clothing theme at H&M in Birmingham? (UPDATE x3 - pulled from stores)

A reader sent me this photo of a vest for sale, Sunday, at an H&M department store in Birmingham, England. I depicts a skull inside a Star of David.

She complained to the store manager, who didn't do anything. 

The H&M website for the United Kingdom did not have this shirt listed for sale.  

Sometimes the hexagram is used with a skull for showing occult-type symbols. I found (with some difficulty) this shirt for sale:

And I also found a skull inside a hexagram from inside a cemetery in Ireland:

But more often you will see this motif nowadays as an antisemitic theme:

It is fair to say that the image is highly offensive, and it seems disingenuous to think that any major Western clothing store would be blind to that fact. 

Perhaps someone can visit an H&M (especially in the UK) and ask a salesperson to look up on the computer the product information visible on the tag shown above. The description they give this shirt internally may shed light on whether this shirt was meant to be evocative of the Star of David or not.

(h/t O)

UPDATE: By coincidence, Eylon Aslan-Levy at Times of Israel blogs that he saw the same shirt in H&M in London on Sunday.

But whatever the designer may have been thinking (and God knows what he was thinking!), what an ordinary, reasonable person sees in this vest is a skull emblazoned over a Star of David – and that is why this item needs to be withdrawn from H&M stores immediately.

I doubt that there were anti-Semitic intentions on the part of the designer, but there is no escaping that the juxtaposition – no matter how accidental – of these two symbols is entirely inappropriate and offensive. The more I look at it, the more I am at a loss to explain how H&M commissioned or even approved this item. It is at minimum an extremely unfortunate oversight in the H&M department, which has displayed an egregious failure of cultural awareness and sensitivity. There is a long history of associating Jewish symbols with Satanic imagery, and this product inadvertently falls within this tradition.

H&M is so far refusing to withdraw this unpleasant item. Its customer services department assures me that it “did not mean to cause offence” and that it was certainly not the store’s intention to “represent a star with… religious connotations”: this assurance is entirely credible, and it would be a mistake to accuse H&M of anti-Semitism, but this design still has no place in British high street fashion, and the only appropriate response for H&M is to discontinue this item forthwith.

(h/t Lampshade Orange)

UPDATE 2: My reader shares the email she received in reply to her complaint:

Thank you for your e-mail regarding the vest we currently have on sale.

I appreciate your concerns regarding the image on this T-shirt and would like to assure you that it was not our intention to promote Anti-Semitic behaviour or to cause offense. Please accept my most sincere apologies that this has however caused offence.

I would like to assure you that we are taking this matter seriously. We have forwarded this query onto our marketing department and at present we await a response from them.

Please bear with us whilst we investigate this further for you.

We do have some items that will be exclusively online or sold in-store, we also have some sales that will be either for in-store or online.

We look forward to speaking with you soon.

UPDATE 3: The shirt was pulled.

A high-street fashion chain has withdrawn a line of T-shirts emblazoned with a skull at the centre of a large star of David.

H&M, which has 3,100 stores across 53 countries, confirmed that the men's T-shirt was removed on Monday morning in the wake of complaints from angry shoppers.

“The order has been stopped and the others have been pulled,” said a H&M spokeswoman.

“This was because of the feedback we received.”

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EU stupidity beyond parody, courtesy of Emer Costello (ElderToons)

From the same AFP article I quoted earlier today:

On Thursday, an EU parliamentary delegation urged Israel to release long-term Palestinian prisoners, saying it was crucial to move a fragile Middle East peace process forward.

"We believe that the release of prisoners... is central to the peace process," said Emer Costello, who headed the EU delegation on a three-day fact-finding mission on Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails.

It is truly a crazy world where this statement can be said by a public figure without a wave of derision for such unfathomable stupidity.

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Hamas MP: "We Must Massacre Jews"

From MEMRI:

In a recent address, Hamas cleric and MP Yunis Al-Astal said that the Koran indicates that “we must massacre [the Jews]... to prevent them from sowing corruption in the world.” Al-Astal further said: “We must restore them to the state of humiliation imposed upon them... They must pay the jizya security tax while they live in our midst.” The address was aired on March 6, 2014, on the Hamas-owned Al-Aqsa TV, broadcasting from Gaza.

Following are excerpts:

Yunis Al-Astal: In today's show, we will discuss the demand that the Palestinian people recognize [Israel] as a Jewish state, so that the occupation will graciously hand them out scraps. I would like to begin by quoting what Allah said about them: "The worst of beasts in the sight of Allah are those who disbelieve. They are the ones with whom you made a covenant, but they break their covenant every time."

[...]

The obvious question is: What is the solution to this gang of people? The Al-Anfal chapter of the Koran provides us with the answer. After He said: "They are the ones with whom you made a covenant, but they break their covenant every time," Allah added: "If you gain mastery over them in a war, use them to disperse those who follow them that they may remember." This indicates that we must massacre them, in order to break them down and prevent them from sowing corruption in the world. They are the ones who still spark the flame of war, but Allah has taken it upon Himself to extinguish it.

[...]

We must restore them to the state of humiliation imposed upon them. They should be dhimmi citizens. This status must be imposed upon them by war. They must pay the jizya security tax while they live in our midst.

[...]

However, in Palestine, where they are occupiers and invaders, they cannot have the status of dhimmis.

The next to last paragraph is actually very important. While Muslims like to claim how well they treated second-class dhimmis over the centuries, al-Astal is admitting the truth: the entire point of dhimmitude is to impose a state of humiliation on Christians and Jews.

Which is why Muslims will never accept Israel. The idea that the weak, dhimmi Jews are more powerful than Muslims - in the middle of the Muslim world - is the worst humiliation that can be imagined. They can sort of accept that 2 billion Christians have a lot of power outside Muslim geographical centers, after all, that's been the status quo for 500 years. But 6 million Jews building a country that a billion Muslims cannot destroy? That cannot be accepted, no matter what.

And this is why these Jews in Israel are not even accorded dhimmi status, according to al-Astal. Their humiliation of Muslims is so egregious that the Koran itself must be interpreted to demand that they be massacred.

But the West still thinks that a couple of Muslim national leaders signing a piece of paper can change the entire Islamic psyche overnight or in a few years.

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03/23 Links: Israel Trek Sponsor 'Shocked' by Arafat Grave Visit, Hamas Spams Israelis

From Ian:

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Richard Millett: Boycotted at Ben White Amnesty event as David Hearst announces “I know who you write for”.

Last night (shabbat) I was at Amnesty International’s London HQ for the launch of Ben White’s updated Israeli Apartheid: A Beginner’s Guide. The event was chaired by David Hearst, former chief foreign leader writer of The Guardian.
After White’s talk he had a Q&A with Hearst after which members of the audience were allowed to ask White questions. Well, most of them anyway.
I had my arm raised for half hour while Hearst took questions from those sitting around me, before taking questions from the other side of the room. While my arm was still raised Hearst called an end to questions.
Feeling rather frustrated I asked whether I could put a question to White. Hearst declined my request and replied:
“I know exactly what you’re up to. And who you are. And who you write for.” (h/t Yenta Press)

Paris Jewish teacher has nose broken, swastika drawn on chest

A Jewish teacher from Paris told police that three men had assaulted and cursed him in Arabic before drawing a swastika on his chest.
The attack occurred on Thursday night, according to a report by the Drancy-based Bureau for National Vigilance Against Anti-Semitism, a watchdog group known as BNVCA.
“They pressed him to the wall and hit his face, around the eyes and on his chest,” the report said. The blows broke his nose and deformed it, according to the report.
“One of the perpetrators opened the victim’s shirt and with a black marker drew a swastika on the man’s bare chest,” BNVCA president Sammy Ghozlan wrote in the BNVCA report.

Israel Trek Sponsor Apologizes to TruthRevolt Reporter, 'Shocked' by Arafat Grave Visit

Finally I need to say that I and many others were deeply shocked by the photo at Arafat’s grave. While the dialogue with Palestinian leaders was essential to the purposes and success of the mission the photo at the grave was deeply offensive. Yasser Arafat was a vicious terrorist who caused the death of thousands of innocents but in addition, his hatred of Israel caused him to destroy a promising peace process and the hopes and dreams of Israelis and Palestinians alike for peace between our peoples.
Clearly the group was not there to “pay respects” but even the appearance of “honoring Arafat’s memory” never should have happened and must never be repeated, a view that is clearly shared by our student leaders as well.

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Abbas' latest threat (ElderToons)

From AFP:

Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas demanded in talks with US President Barack Obama that Israel free key Palestinian prisoners, including Marwan Barghuti, a Palestinian official said Thursday.

Earlier this month, Abbas said Palestinians will not agree to extend peace talks with Israel beyond their April 29 deadline without Israel releasing more prisoners beyond the fourth and final tranche planned for later this month.

During his meeting with Obama in Washington on Monday, "President Abbas demanded the release of more prisoners and Palestinian leaders in Israeli jails, like Saadat and Barghuti and Shubaki," manager of the Palestinian prisoner club Abdulal al-Anani told the official Voice of Palestine radio.

He was referring to Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) leader Ahmad Saadat, former Palestinian Liberation Organisation finance official Fuad Shubaki and Marwan Barghuti, one of the main architects of the 2000 intifada.

And this isn't even the most ridiculous part. Stay tuned for the next 'toon later today. (Or check my Twitter feed if you can't wait.)

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Unity! Fatah, Islamic Jihad and Hamas terrorist joint funeral

Today there was a large funeral in Jenin for the three terrorists killed by Israel yesterday.

[T]he soldiers were greeted with gunfire from [Hamas leader] Al-Haija when they entered the compound. The soldiers asked the residents to exit the building, and shot warning rounds.

Meanwhile, the terrorist continued shooting at the Israeli soldiers. Within minutes dozens of armed Palestinians came to the location and opened fire on the IDF and Border Guard troops.

After a short intermission, the Hamas man exited the house while firing at the Israeli forces. Two Yamam soldiers were lightly injured from the shooting but managed to return fire, killing the 22-year-old terrorist.

At the same time, a gunfight raged between the troops and armed Palestinians that arrived at the scene. Two of the armed Palestinians were killed in the fire exchange, and seven others were wounded, one critically.

The two others killed were members of Islamic Jihad and Fatah's Al Aqsa Brigades.

Here are the three terrorists united in death wearing their respective terror flags::

The funeral was attended by thousands:

And, under the noses of PA security, masked and armed terrorists were openly roaming the streets:

(h/t Bob K)

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NGO counts 38% of rockets exploding in Gaza

The Gaza NGO Safety Office tries to keep a count of rocket fire. Unfortunately, it does not seem to be accurate, but its tallies are still notable.

Islamic Jihad claimed to shoot some 120 rockets at Israel earlier this month. Other groups associated with Mahmoud Abbas' Fatah claimed about 20 more rockets. The IDF said more than 60 rockets landed in Israel.

According to GANSO, they counted 61 rockets and 14 mortars being shot during the entire two week period from March 6-19, not counting a few test rockets shot to sea. Of those 61, 23 of them fell short or exploded on the launch pad.

That is a 38% failure rate, virtually the same rate that I noted for a two-week period in January.

Even if GANSO is undercounting, the percentages are probably not too far off.

As we know, at least two rockets landed on houses during those two weeks, killing at least one and injuring several. Another rocket exploded while being built, killing 4 terrorists and a two-year old child.

And there have been many other Gazans killed by terror rockets over the years, a statistic that the media simply doesn't report.

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Egypt excludes Turkey. Qatar from Islamic summit

From Al Arabiya:

Turkish and Qatari delegates have been excluded from attending an upcoming Islamic affairs summit in Egypt, a minister said on Saturday, citing the two nations’ foreign policies towards some Arab states as the reason.

Egypt’s Awqaf (religious endowments) Minister Mohamed Mokhtar Gomaa said invitations were not sent to the two countries to attend the two-day conference of the Supreme Council of Islamic Affairs starting on Monday.

Gomaa said Egypt had decided not to deal with any Turkish official until Turkey imposes a change on its foreign policy, reported al-Dostour newspaper, in an apparent reference to Ankara’s frosty relations with Cairo after the crackdown on Islamist protesters in the Egyptian capital in August last year.

The decision to exclude a Qatari delegation from the conference was made by Egypt after some Arab states curtailed ties with Doha last month, the minister said, adding that Qatar is involved in acts that “harm the security of Egypt,” local daily al-Masry al-Youm reported.

And this isn't even a Shiite/Sunni thing.

Must be Jewish plot.

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03/22 Links: J Street Endorses Palestinian Refusal to Recognize Jewish State; Hijacking HR Law

From Ian:

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J Street Endorses Palestinian Refusal to Recognize Israel as Jewish State

In a development that is not sending shockwaves through the pro-Israel community, the “pro-Israel, pro-peace” advocacy group J Street has declared its support for the Palestinian refusal to recognize Israel as a Jewish state.
In a statement posted on the group’s website, executive director Jeremy Ben-Ami says that to “keep moving forward, both [Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas] now need to give a little.”
Netanyahu, he says, must drop his insistence that Abbas recognize Israel as a Jewish State because “it is simply unrealistic and unreasonable to expect any Palestinian leader to consent” to such a demand.
Ben-Ami never goes on to say what Abbas “needs to give.”

Caroline Glick: The worst alternative

Finally, they assume that Israel has no ability to withstand a European economic war. But this assessment ignores Israel’s burgeoning trade with Asia. China is building a rail link between the Red Sea and the Mediterranean through Israel as an alternative to the Suez Canal. Israel is India’s largest military supplier. Israel’s energy independence and emergence as a major exporter of natural gas similarly decreases its reliance on European markets.
To paraphrase Winston Churchill, the Israeli one-state plan is the worst possible plan for managing the Palestinian and pan-Arab conflict with Israel, except for every other plan that has been tried from time to time. It presents Israel with considerable threats and challenges. But on balance, as I show in my book, these threats are less acute and less dangerous than the ones Israel now faces. Moreover, the Israeli one-state plan is a viable prospect, which similarly distinguishes it from all the other ideas on offer.

Melanie Phillips "The Hijacking Human of Rights Law"

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Too bad! Jordanian murderer of schoolgirls ends hunger strike

Last week, trying to take advantage of the uproar after Israel killed a Palestinian Jordanian judge at the Allenby bridge, a Jordanian who murdered seven Israeli schoolgirls started a hunger strike to pressure Jordan to release him. He was even refusing his medication.

Unfortunately, he has ended the strike after less than a week rather than seeing it through to the end.

A Jordanian soldier jailed for life for the murder of seven Israeli schoolgirls, who had been on a hunger strike for five days, was hospitalised Wednesday after his health deteriorated, police said.

"Ahmad Dakamseh is currently being hospitalised after his health deteriorated because he had been refusing to eat or take medicine since Friday," a statement said.

"He ended his hunger strike in hospital and is currently receiving all necessary care."

On March 10, Israeli soldiers killed Jordanian Judge Raed Zeiter in a scuffle at the Allenby Bridge border crossing, prompting Jordanian MPs to demand that Dakamseh be freed.

But the government refused, and Dakamseh began his hunger strike.

Israel, which said Zeiter had attacked the soldiers and tried to steal one of their weapons, expressed regret over the shooting but stopped short of apologising.

In 1997, Dakamseh opened fire on a group of Israeli schoolgirls as they visited Baqura, a scenic peninsula on the Jordan River near the Israeli border.

He killed seven of the girls and wounded five more, as well as a teacher.

He was taking medicine for high blood pressure and diabetes, according to his son.

It really is a shame.

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03/21 Links Pt2: No, you shouldn’t visit Arafat’s grave; Oxfam posts Cynthia McKinney webpage

From Ian:

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No, you shouldn’t have visited Arafat’s grave

I highly doubt though that the PA officials you met with spoke about the town squares throughout the PA named after suicide bombers. I also doubt they gave you a glimpse into the PA’s official educational system or media which daily incites against the State of Israel and the Jewish people.
I’ll save what was missing from your visit for another discussion, and give you time to explore that reality here.
But back to the Arafat smiley.
The bottom line is whether you like it or not, whether it was your intention or not – a smiling group photo at the grave of someone who led a life of pure terror, murder, and evil, DOES in fact honor his memory, and does serve as a statement of approval.

Sponsors of Harvard Arafat Grave Visit Attack TruthRevolt

Barry Shrage, President of Boston’s Combined Jewish Philanthropies, sent a letter to his Board of Directors and Past Board Members harshly condemning the coverage of Harvard Israel Trek 2014’s visit to Yasser Arafat’s grave. Instead of speaking out against the visit, Shrage elected to attack and bully members of the pro-Israel community who were outraged by the photo, labeling them “ideologically motivated bloggers” and “at the extreme edge of the Jewish community.”
Shrage then provided a link to a student response that was posted on The Times of Israel under the title “Photo Distorts Purpose and Impact of Harvard Israel ‘Trek.’ The original title of the article was “No apologies for visiting Arafat’s grave” though it was later changed to “Yes, we visited Arafat’s grave.” The URL of the website still reads http://blogs.timesofisrael.com/no-apologies-for-visiting-arafats-grave/
Missing from the statement is a condemnation of the group visit and photo by Arafat's tombstone. Arafat was responsible for the murder of thousands of people, with a special focus on Jews.

J Street U Attacks David Horowitz Freedom Center

J Street U Penn attacked the Hillel of Greater Philadelphia (HGP), The J Street Challenge and The David Horowitz Freedom Center. After explaining how they felt attacked by the movie and Hillel of Greater Philadelphia’s sponsorship of the film, J Street U Penn attempted to challenge HGP’s co-sponsors:
Ironically, J Street U has come under heavy fire for its association with numerous anti-Israel and anti-Semitic groups:
J Street U Jerusalem hosted an event with an anti-IDF group and the group’s lead speaker equated the IDF with Palestinian suicide bombers.
J Street U Tufts sponsored an event with Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP). The SJP chapter at Northeastern University was so extreme and anti-Semitic that they were suspended by the university.
J Street U takes its students to the grave of terrorist Yasser Arafat.
J Street U students clapped for the “right of return” at their conference.

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EU to build desalination plant in Gaza. Guess who is opposed?

AFP reports:

The European Union and UNICEF launched a project Thursday to build a desalination plant in the Gaza Strip to provide 75,000 Palestinians with drinking water.

A joint statement said the project will be implemented by UNICEF thanks to a 10-million-euro ($13.7-million) EU grant.

Just 5.8 percent of Gaza households have good quality water because of increased salinity caused by sewage infiltration of groundwater, according to a statement released Thursday by the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics ahead of World Water Day on Saturday.

“Access to clean water is a fundamental human right for all. And yet many Gazans face acute water shortages on a day-to-day basis,” EU representative John Gatt-Rutter said as the first stone was laid for the project.

“Others can only access water of very poor quality,” he added, saying the new plant “offers the prospect of access to clean water for many thousands of families”.

The plant at Deir al-Balah in the center of the territory is expected to become operational in 2015, and will supply fresh water to 75,000 people in Khan Yunis and Rafah in the south.

Who could possibly be against this?

Well, a lot of organizations, actually - and all of them pretend that they care about Palestinian Arabs!
A couple of years ago, when UNICEF put out the bids for the desalination equipment, Gaza unions said they would boycott UNICEF if it allowed Israeli companies to bid on the project. It is unclear if UNICEF caved to their demands, but it shows that politics is more important than public health for Gaza unions.

But they are not alone.

As AIJAC pointed out recently, an entire consortium of Palestinian Arab NGOs have come out against the concept of desalination in Gaza.

Yes, you've read that right.

The consortium, EWASH, wrote:

...The undersigned organizations would like to voice their concerns regarding the implications of seawater desalination for Gaza as well as the challenges facing it:
1. Perpetuating the status quo while accommodating the occupation...
2. Increasing the isolation of Gaza whilst enabling Israel to ignore its obligations...
3. Increasing the vulnerability of the civilian population of Gaza...
4. Desalination plant requires significant amounts of electricity which Gaza does not have...
5. Seawater desalination plant is environmentally unsustainable, which will further deteriorate the already deplorable environmental situation in Gaza...
6. Further sustainable and right-based alternative solutions exist...

The "right" they are demanding is for Israel to provide the water to Gaza at a discount.

Isn't it fascinating that "pro-Palestinian" organizations are asking for Gaza to be more dependent on Israel, rather than more independent?

Instead of adding new freshwater to a region that is already in crisis, they want Israel to redistribute the water it has - to its own detriment.

And who are these brilliant NGOs who don't want Gaza to have new sources of fresh drinking water?

Endorsing organizations:

EWASH members:

1. DanChurchAid
2. Applied Research Institute Jerusalem (ARIJ)
3. Polish Humanitarian Action
4. Institute of Environmental and Water Studies - Birzeit University
5. Near East Council of Churches-Jerusalem
6. Middle East Children's Alliance
7. Palestinian Environment NGO Network (PENGON)
8. We Effect – Swedish Cooperative Centre
9. MAAN Development Centre
10. House for Water and Environment (HWE)
11. Palestinian Wastewater Engineers Group (PalWEG)
12. Palestinian Agricultural Relief Committees (PARC)

Other civil society organizations:

13. Al-Mezan Centre for Human Rights
14. The Palestinian Centre for Human rights
15. Media Environmental Centre
16. Palestinian Farmers Union (PFU)
17. Earth and Human Centre for Research and Studies (EHCRS)
18. Palestinian Farmers Association
19. Land Research Centre
20. Institute for water and environment – Al-Azhar University
21. Union of Agricultural Work Committees (UWAC)
22. Palestinian Environment Friends (PEF)
23. Arab Centre for Agricultural Development

Keep this list in mind, because these orgsnizations - including so-called "human rights" organizations - are so obsessed with hurting Israel that they are willing to increase the suffering of Gazans to accomplish it.

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