Elder Of Ziyon - Israel News

Wednesday, October 03, 2012

Video of Muslims harassing peaceful Jews on Temple Mount

Yesterday, there were some clashes on the Temple Mount as Muslims harassed and tried to attack peaceful Jewish visitors to the Temple Mount. Here is video from the Al Aqsa Foundation site:

As Arutz-7 reports:

Police ignored threats by Arabs to butcher Jews ascending the Temple Mount but arrested an Arab for trying to stab a police officer. The police also arrested Likud nationalist Moshe Feiglin for attempting to pray there.

A number of Jews, including those from the Our Land of Israel movement, went up to the holy site on Tuesday despite rumors Monday night that Arabs planned to cause problems. The police were alerted but provided no protection for the group of Jews.

“When we went up on the Temple Mount, we were greeted with cries of ‘Allah is Great,’” said Asaf Fried, one of the members in the group.

”The police again did nothing, even towards the end of the visit when the Arabs really came close to us and blocked our exit, shouting, 'We will expel the Jews in blood and fire and will butcher Jews.’

“The police still did nothing,” and the group of Jews escaped without harm.

The Arab media is reporting it quite differently, talking about Jews "storming" the site and performing "Talmudic rituals" as usual.

Here are some of those "stormers:"

Scary looking, aren't they?

Hamas demolishes "illegal" PalArab homes; shoot protesters. Human rights orgs silent.

From Palestine Press Agency:

Three civilians and two members of the Hamas police were wounded Tuesday, during clashes after bulldozers and security agents came to remove houses and structures for citizens in the village of Um al-Nasrr in the northern Gaza Strip, claiming that they were on government land.

Hamas police arrived Tuesday morning, broke into the area of Um Al Nasr north of Beit Lahiya and proceeded to demolish the homes of a number of citizens and their facilities saying they were built on government land.

Dozens of people stood up to the police force, refusing to allow the demolition of their homes, prompting Hamas police officers to fire live bullets towards citizens, wounding 3 people.

Dozens of people pelted Hamas forces with stones, which resulted in the arrest of a number of them.

Hamas police and bulldozers that accompanied them were able to remove the houses by force, despite an outcry from the owners.

So Hamas is bulldozing Palestinian Arab homes - and no human rights agency says a word.

And they shoot protesters with live ammunition - and no human rights agency says a word. (Laughably, they claim to have shot only in the air, but somehow the injured received gunshot wounds anyway.)

It almost makes you think that there is a double standard going on here, doesn't it?

Links while I was out

From Ian, October 1:

Blockade-running ship to set sail for Gaza next week
Foreign Ministry: Activists will not reach the Hamas-run Strip

"Activists said the schooner Estelle, which set sail from Sweden three months ago, was expected to reach the Gaza coast by mid-October. Since casting off, the Estelle has docked at several Europeans ports, where its passengers have held conferences to raise awareness of the situation in Gaza."

Israeli SARS Bio-Weapon is 'B-Movie Fantasy'
An Israeli spokesman says a leftist website accusing Jerusalem of attacking Arabs with the SARS virus is involved in a "B-movie fantasy."

"A leftist website that accused Israel of attempting to attack "specific Arab communities" with strains of the SARS virus" is involved in a "B-movie fantasy," says Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Yigal Palmor. Israel's health ministry has warned local hospitals to be on alert for the virus since two cases, including one person who died of the illness, were identified in Saudi Arabia in the past several weeks."

Attempted Palestinian Terror Shooting on Israeli Road

British government pledges new cooperation with the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation

“So the question which naturally arises is on what, exactly, do Baroness Warsi and her British government colleagues intend to “cooperate” with the OIC? What “mutual goals” does the UK government think it has with an organization which seeks to limit universal human rights, curb freedom of expression, and establish its headquarters in the capital city of a UN member sovereign country?”

Jewish communities under threat in Malmo, Sweden?

"There is no doubt in my mind that the rising tide of anti-Semitism in Malmo is attributable, in large part, to local radicalised youth. However, matters are certainly not helped by local leftist activists, possibly a few far-right extremists and, perhaps more surprisingly, local political leaders.
Sweden today is a country that really excels in producing leftists of the type that are normally only found at Vanessa Redgrave’s dinner parties. These are leftists who leave the principles of the old left at the door as they enter a world of cultural relativism and faux radicalism in which the only guiding principle is the desire for an easy life."

Romney maps out new course for America’s Middle East policy
In scathing Wall Street Journal op-ed, the Republican presidential contender blasts Obama for his ‘incomprehension’ regarding Israel

Poll: 62% of Americans Support use of Force to Stop Nuclear Iran

Morsi and Erdogan join forces, speak out against Assad, Israel
With Hamas’s Mashaal in audience, Turkish PM refuses reconciliation until Israel lifts blockade of Gaza and apologizes for flotilla deaths

Morsi’s message

"Egypt’s new leader Mohamed Morsi is proving to be a cunning communicator, at least so far as what he puts across to undiscerning Western ears. He manages to sound exceedingly moderate and reasonable, while enunciating unreasonable, indeed radical demands that must be met or else. He in effect says that “it’s my way or the highway.”

Egyptian president’s adviser describes Israel as ‘occupied Arab Palestine’
‘This will remain its name till the end of time,’ aide says regarding Cairo’s future relations with Israel

Mashaal confirms he’s stepping down but downplays rift with Gaza leadership, takes a jab at Egypt
Hamas political chief receives standing ovation for speech in Ankara, in which he promises continued ‘resistance’ against Israel

The stalemate in Turkish-Israeli relations
How the rise of Turkey’s JDP party has reshaped Ankara’s foreign policy and its ties to Jerusalem.

Religions not the same by MICHAEL COREN

"The film about Mohammed is appallingly made, but does contain some truth about the man’s life.
The Christ in urine display is also appallingly bad, and says nothing of interest or authenticity about the life of Christ.
The Muslim response to the former is violence and demands for blasphemy laws, the Christian response to the latter a press release and indifference."

Thousands of Bangladeshi Muslims torch 10 Buddhist temples, 40 homes
Rioters infuriated by Buddhist boy’s Facebook photo of a burned Quran

Attackers of Hindu temple charged with blasphemy

KARACHI: In an extraordinary turn of events, Section 295-A was used to register a blasphemy case against Muslim men for damaging a Hindu temple during riots on Ishq-e-Rasool Day.

TDSB (Toronto District School Board) "Lesson" For the Canadian Islamic Congress's Islamic History Month Canada: Natually, There IS No Israel

“Natural Palestine refers to the region bounded in the west by the Mediterranean Sea, east by Syria and Jordan, north by Lebanon, and south by Egypt and the Gulf of Aqaba.”

Suicide Bombers 'martyrs' according to UK taxpayer-supported charity

"CADFA openly describes suicide bombers as ‘martyrs’ who were ‘killed’ by Zionists. Their website lists a number of persons responsible for death and destruction, and perversely describes their fate as ‘killed’. Two of them, Osama Mohammad Bahar and Nabeel Mohammad Halabiyeh conducted a suicide bombing in which 11 people were killed and 155 were wounded. CADFA makes no mention of their atrocities and instead pays homage to their sacrifice. Given the context, or lack thereof, it is not unreasonable at all to infer that CADFA supports these murderous attacks."

Amazon under fire over Nazi camp puzzle

Ahmadinejad’s cameraman defects, seeks asylum in US
Hassan Gol Khanban had accompanied the Iranian president on his trip to the UN General Assembly

Morissette to close out tour in Israel

Gaza Mom Chooses Israeli Hospital to Save Baby

After losing 3 babies to rare birth defects at Egyptian hospitals, a Gaza mother followed doctors' advice and took her fourth to Israel.

Israel Daily Picture: How a Family Celebrated Sukkot in Samarkand in 1870
Is This the Same Family in Jerusalem in 1900?

And from October 2:

After Abbas The End of the PLO's Old-Guard Monopoly by Khaled Abu Toameh

“Abbas's supporters have defended him by claiming that he is facing a "big conspiracy" to remove him from power. Although it is true that as long as the Israelis are in the West Bank, Hamas will not be there, Abbas's supporters have even gone as far as making the ridiculous claim that Hamas and Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman are working together to topple Abbas.
If Abbas really wanted to step down, he could have done so many years ago. But Abbas is interested only in one thing -- staying in power until his last day. His threats are only aimed at sending the following message to his followers: "If I go, the Palestinians will have no future."

PA expects UNGA vote on statehood by November By KHALED ABU TOAMEH
PLO Executive Committee member Ashrawi says she expects vote on November 29- International Day of Solidarity with Palestinians. [est 1977!]

'US calls on EU to oppose PA statehood bid at UN'

“The Guardian reported that the US communique described Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas's UN move as "extremely counterproductive," and warned of "significant negative consequences" for the PA, including financial sanctions.
The memorandum purportedly also reiterated Washington's long-standing policy that Palestinian statehood "can only be achieved via direct negotiations with the Israelis," and thus urged EU governments "to support efforts" to block the bid.”

70% of Americans hold favorable view of Israel, new poll finds
Only UK cited more often as best US ally

Jordanian tribe slams new Israel envoy
Obeidat tribe condemns appointment of its member as Jordan's new ambassador to Jewish state, saying 'all red lines have been crossed'

The Afghanistanization of the Middle East

“The Middle East that we have grown used to is a colonial legacy. Its corrupt regimes with the derivative structures of modern states are being torn down by the Arab Spring. The Islamists can have democratic elections where they are the majority, but what they cannot have are strong militaries, and that leaves them with few options but to rely on Islamist militias to fight Islamist militias; turning the region back to before the rise of the Ottoman Empire.
Islamists saw Afghanistan as the future of the Middle East and they were right. Saudi Arabia and the oil states that backed the Arab Spring are Afghanistans with oil. Egypt, Tunisia and Syria are on the way to becoming Afghanistans without oil.”

Study: UN misconduct goes unpunished

"When U.N. staffers on peacekeeping missions were accused of misconduct or corruption over the last couple of years, more than two-thirds of them were exonerated by the U.N.'s internal tribunal system, according to research provided to AP by a whistleblower-protection group."

Turkey’s Ruling Party Celebrates Hamas

"That President Obama describes Erdoğan as one of his closest foreign friends is scandalous. Erdoğan has transformed Turkey from an aspiring democracy to a country which ranks below even Russia in terms of basic freedoms. And it has transformed Turkey from a country fighting terrorism to, in effect, a country cheerleading terrorists."

eyeSight puts your TV on digital steroids
The Israeli 2D gesture company’s technology will power a new set-top box from InnoDigital, which will soup up the capabilities of just about any TV set

Kinect technology firm PrimeSense envisions gesture-controlled office of the future
It was this technology that Microsoft took a punt on for its Kinect system, which uses both the processor system and the optical elements designed by PrimeSense.
Such sterling success for Microsoft with the device was obviously good news for PrimeSense, even if its name remains a relative unknown in the tech world.

Top 10 ways Israeli scientists are battling breast cancer
In honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, ISRAEL21c has put together a list of the top 10 latest Israeli advances in breast cancer.

"Free Gaza" publishes, and deletes, unambigiously anti-semitic tweet

As if there was any doubt that the people behind the "Free Gaza" movement are motivated by anything other than pure Jew-hatred...

From Avi Mayer in Storify:

The Free Gaza Movement is the key actor behind the successive flotillas that have sought to violate the maritime closure around Gaza in support of Hamas. It is chaired by Huwaida Arraf, who also heads the International Solidarity Movement (and has endorsed the use of violence against Israel), and its Board of Advisors includes such luminaries as Naomi Klein, Peter Hansen, and Jenny Tonge. It has been endorsed by a range of organizations and individuals, including Desmond Tutu, Jewish Voice for Peace, Code Pink, the Palestine Red Crescent Society, the Rachel Corrie Foundation, George Galloway, and Neturei Karta International.

On Sunday, September 30, a disturbing tweet was posted by their official account (click to expand the image):

Akamaihd

16 hours ago

The tweet read, "Zionists operated the concentration camps and helped murder millions of innocent Jews," and contained a link. The link led to this horrifying video:

Zionists operated the concentration camps and helped murder millions of innocent Jews

91177info

9 hours ago

Among the shocking statements made in the video are the following:

"What is going on is the grand Nazi scheme. There's only one political party in the world today and that's called the Nazis. And you say, 'well, Adolf Hitler died in 1945 and that was the end of the Nazi Party.' But that's because you've never been told what the origin of 'Nazi' is. 'Na' is National Socialism, which was the German Nazis, and in 1923 there was a double agent who came to Hitler and he said to Hitler, 'look, your Nazi Party, your National Socialist Party, is not getting off the ground. You need an alliance.' And he suggested that they ally with the Zionist Party. So the 'Na' of National Socialism joined with the Zionist Party, the World Zionist Party, in 1923, and ever after was known as the Nazis, N-A-Z-I. The 'zi' was for 'Zionists. But of course no one knew that, because our popular mythology is that the terrible Nazis were attacking the Jews." (00:38-01:36)

"And of course Hitler, allying himself with the Zionists, he said, 'after all, you're right,' he said, 'we have the same goals.' And so he allied with the Zionist Party and the mission of the Nazis was to force the anti-Zionist Jews to accept Zionism. And this is what the concentration camps were about. They put the anti-Zionist Jews in the concentration camps and they were placed under the direct administration of the Sonderkommandos, who were the Zionist Jews. So the concentration camps were run by the Zionist Jews in order to punish and get rid of the anti-Zionist Jews, which they did. And of course that's a part of the Holocaust that you're never told." (4:04-4:48)

[...]
Disturbing Silence

It is disturbing to note that, by my count, not a single one of the individuals or organizations listed on the Free Gaza Movement website as being associated with the organization has (as of this writing) distanced themselves from the movement's apparent anti-Semitism or withdrawn their endorsement as a result of this shocking incident. Are we to assume that all the organizations listed here approve of Mullins's outrageous claims about the Holocaust? Can we assume anything else? It has now been more than 48 hours since the tweet first appeared.

Read the whole thing. (And there are lots of updates there as well, as Free Gaza leaders dig themselves deeper into the hole of lies and absurd claims.)

Islamist released in Egypt's "Spring" implicated in Libya embassy murders

From WSJ:

The revolutions that swept the Middle East and North Africa also emptied prisons of militants, a problem now emerging as a potential new terrorist threat.

Fighters linked to one freed militant, Muhammad Jamal Abu Ahmad, took part in the Sept. 11 attack on U.S. diplomatic outposts in Libya that killed four Americans, U.S. officials believe based on initial reports. Intelligence reports suggest that some of the attackers trained at camps he established in the Libyan Desert, a former U.S. official said.

Western officials say Mr. Ahmad has petitioned the chief of al Qaeda, to whom he has long ties, for permission to launch an al Qaeda affiliate and has secured financing from al Qaeda's Yemeni wing.

Of the new militant operatives, Mr. Ahmad is among the most worrisome to Western officials. Thought to be about 45, he is a native of Cairo's Shobra district, a densely populated, low-income neighborhood along the Nile that includes many Coptic Christians, said Barak Barfi of the New America Foundation, a Washington think tank, who recently interviewed several of Mr. Ahmad's associates in Egypt.

On returning to Egypt in the 1990s, a former U.S. official said, Mr. Ahmad became head of the operational wing of Egyptian Islamic Jihad, which was then headed by Ayman al-Zawahiri, a physician who is now the chief of al Qaeda. Associates of Mr. Ahmad agree he was part of Egyptian Islamic Jihad but say he wasn't among its leaders.

Many of that group's fighters embraced a cease-fire with the government of former President Hosni Mubarak in 1997, but Mr. Ahmad earned a reputation as a hard-liner by rejecting it, according to Mr. Barfi.

"Unlike the organization's leaders who have reconciled with the state and have eagerly embraced the democratic process, Mr. Ahmad and his cohorts reject any semblance of compromise with the state they have fought for decades," Mr. Barfi said.

Former militants who knew Mr. Ahmad in an Egyptian prison, where he was locked up around 2000, describe a hardened inmate who showed belligerence toward the guards. While most prisoners submitted to random cell searches, Mr. Ahmad often refused to let guards remove items from his cell, the former inmates say.

Freed last year, Mr. Ahmad is building his own terror group, say Western officials, who call it the Jamal Network. They say he appears to be trying to tap former fellow inmates such as Murjan Salim, a man who, like Mr. Ahmad, has ties to al Qaeda's Dr. Zawahiri. Former associates of Mr. Ahmad said Mr. Salim is directing aspiring jihadis to Mr. Ahmad's camps in Libya.

Hundreds of "political prisoners" were freed from Egyptian prisons in the first weeks after Mubarak was toppled, and it appears that Muhammad Jamal Abu Ahmad was one of them.

Another benefit of the Arab Spring - the murder of Americans.

(h/t EBoZ)

Chag Sameach!

Another week, another holiday.

Here's wishing my readers a chag sameach!

I will not be blogging until Tuesday night.

Sunday links

From Ian:

Egypt’s Christians, facing the fate of Egyptian Jews

"After the Egyptian military took power in the country 1952, it started its campaign against Egyptian Jews, launching its propaganda against Jews in all the state-owned media. It freed all the terrorists who had committed violence against Jews before the coup, and jailed liberals and seculars instead. It encouraged aggression toward the Egyptian Jewish minority, which led to new terrorist attacks against Jewish individuals and properties in Egypt.
Between 1954 and 1956, 80,000 Egyptian Jews were expelled from Egypt, but not before they were robbed of their property. After that, Egypt revoked their citizenship, forbidding them from returning to their homeland. Of course, before they left, Egyptian authorities forced them to sign papers saying that they had been treated fairly and were leaving of their own will. There are currently around 300 Jews living in Egypt, isolated in an environment that is hostile to them."

Let them call me crazy

Mudar Zahran, a lecturer, publicist and Palestinian blogger attends international seminar on new media and public diplomacy given by the Public Diplomacy and Diaspora Affairs Ministry at Ariel University Center in Samaria, speaks to Israel Hayom about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Palestinians mad Israelis included in ‘Bethlehem Walk’ By KHALED ABU TOAMEH

Youth groups express outrage over plans to allow the participation of Israelis in inaugural silent walk in Bethlehem.
"Some activists published on Facebook pictures of Palestinians involved in the planning of the event and called on the Palestinian Authority to take action against them.
“We won’t allow the Israelis to desecrate Bethlehem,” said one of the activists. “We will do our utmost to prevent this disgraceful event from taking place in our holy city.”

At U.N., Muslim world questions Western freedom of speech

Muslim leaders were in unison at the United Nations this week arguing that the West was hiding behind its defense of freedom of speech and ignoring cultural sensitivities in the aftermath of anti-Islam slurs that have raised fears of a widening East-West cultural divide.

First Person: Dinner with Ahmadinejad

"Our meeting is the most important of Ahmadinejad’s visit, Khazaee told us, because, “you are the people who will shape the future of the world and the United States.” That platitude unnerved me only when Ahmadinejad was greeted with a standing ovation by these “future leaders” when he entered the room. Likewise, I cringed when students later addressed him as “Your Excellency” during the question-and- answer session. One even prefaced her remarks by saying it was “a pleasure” to be in his presence. That’s when I felt my dinner beginning to come back up."

Anti-Semitism on the rise in the UK

Anti-Semitism in the UK is on the rise again, especially around the time of the Toulouse massacre
"A report published this week by the Community Security Trust (CST) shows that anti-Semitic incidents in the UK have risen in the months January- June 2012, compared with last year’s figures.
In the first six months of this year, 513 potential incidents of anti-Semitism were reported to the CST; of which the CST deemed 299 cases to be anti-Semitic."

[See also The Guardian acknowledges a degree of anti-semitism by Tom Gross - EoZ]

Retrieving Golan a key priority for Syrians, says Islamist preacher who fled Assad
To prevail over Damascus, rebels need more weapons, says Youssef Zoabi, who took refuge in Jordan last year. ‘Once we’ve won, we want an Islamist regime’

Russia said evacuating its personnel from base in Syria
Moscow pulls military staff and civilians out of Tartus, rebels claim

Germany's Gunter Grass defends Vanunu in new poem
Nobel laureate praises Mordechai Vanunu, who revealed Israeli nuke program, as "hero" because exposed the truth to the public.

3 trucks of Gazan furniture allowed into West Bank
Palestinian Authority orders the 35 tons of furniture from a Gazan factory for their West Bank schools.

Hamas cracks down on Gaza youths’ saggy pants
Several teens arrested for wearing Western-style trousers that expose their underpants

EMA approves MediWound burns treatment
Market sources believe that Teva will begin marketing the treatment in 2013.

“The European Medicines Agency (EMA) has recommended approval of third degree burn treatment NexoBrid, developed by MediWound Ltd. This is a major achievement for the company, as this is the first time the EU has approaved a treatment that consists of an enzyme-based debriding agent for the removal of necrotic tissue from severe burn wounds, instead of surgical intervention.”

From Ethiopia to the Knesset: Shlomo Molla Lives the Israeli Dream

Few can understand the power of immigrants’ transition from life in Ethiopia to the promise and opportunity of Israel as well as Member of Knesset Shlomo Neguese Molla (Kadima). "Growing up in a Jewish village in Ethiopia, where Molla studied at a school sponsored by the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee (JDC), “next year in Jerusalem” was merely a lifelong dream. Now it is a reality, and then some. Many would call his story extraordinary, but Molla says it is simply a story of Israel—typifying what determination, reason and tolerance can accomplish."

Even though the ISM, Free Gaza Movement and others keep refusing to place any blame on Egypt for Gaza's economic isolation, Hamas knows when it makes sense to put some pressure on their fellow Islamists.

This morning, Hamas held a protest rally in Rafah against Egypt's closure of some smuggling tunnels and to try to convince Egypt to allow a free-trade zone in Rafah which would allow goods to enter Gaza more freely. A Hamas spokesperson said that the terror group would be willing to shut the tunnels immediately if the free-trade zone would be established.

Egypt is resisting the idea for a number of reasons: it doesn't want Israel to benefit by making Gaza less dependent on aid from the Israeli side, and it does not want to become responsible for Gaza itself. It also fears that the free trade zone will in effect become part of a de facto expansion of Gaza into the Sinai. Furthermore, Egypt fears that such a zone would make it even harder for Fatah and Hamas to ever reconcile.

For its part, Hamas is trying to shame the Muslim Brotherhood-led Egyptian government to show it really cares about Gaza, and isn't just engaging in lip-service. Banners at the rally feature supposedly suffering Gaza children.

Hamas outsources terror

The Hamas-affiliated Palestine Times has a photo essay of a Saturday parade in Gaza by the Saladin Brigades of the PRC:

The parade was for the 12th anniversary of the terror group.

Even the PRC website doesn't have all photos.

Since no one can march in Gaza without Hamas permission, and no one can import weapons without Hamas permission, the only conclusion is that Hamas has outsourced some of it terror activities to the PRC and other groups like Islamic Jihad which likewise have similar parades.

This way Hamas can try to portray itself as moderate and pragmatic when they publish op-eds in the New York Times and when they present themselves as the legitimate leaders of "Palestine" to Arab nations, but it can ensure that when it decides that rockets should be fired on Jews, rockets will be fired.

Gee, I hope this Palestinian Lebanese cleric doesn't get an aneurysm

From MEMRI:

Following are excerpts from an interview with Sheik Muhammad Zaghmout, head of the Palestinian Islamic Council in Lebanon, which aired on Mayadeen TV on September 7, 2012.

Sheik Muhammad Zaghmout: I say to myself, to the Islamic scholars, to the Muslims themselves, and to the viewers all over the world – from north to south, and from east to west: Oh Muslims, unite! Unite! Unite! Unity is the key to your strength, while disintegration will lead to your death.

Implement the words of Allah: "Prepare for them what force and steeds of war you can, to strike terror in the hearts of the enemies of Allah and your enemies." You shall not regain Al-Aqsa and Palestine without preparations, rockets, and guns. You shall not regain Palestine through negotiations, capitulations, kisses, or hugs.

The one thing that will restore Palestine to you is Jihad, Jihad, and more Jihad. Any nation that forsook Jihad was humiliated by Allah.

Interviewer: What about the sanctity of blood?

Sheik Muhammad Zaghmout: A Muslim is forbidden from harming a fellow Muslim – taking his life, the honor of his women, or his wealth. Allah deems the destruction of the Ka'ba to be less severe than the killing of an innocent Muslim.

In 2007, this same guy said

The Koran says: 'Make ready for them what strength you can...' But we say to Allah: We don't want to, because we're afraid that they will call us terrorists. If killing the Zionist Jews, the Americans, the English, and the French in Palestine, in Iraq, and in Afghanistan is considered terrorism – I am the number one terrorist.
[...]
The Prophet of Allah has promised us that the Jews will gather in Palestine, and that the Muslims will fight them, and totally kill them. Even the stone and the tree will say: 'Oh Muslims, there is a Jew behind me, come and kill him.' You might tell me that I am relying on supernatural hadiths. I believe this is not supernatural but is the core of our belief.

If he supports the immigration of Jews to Palestine, then doesn't that make him a Zionist?

It's getting easier and easier to be a Hamas "martyr"

The latest Hamas "work accident:"

Ezzedeen Al Qassam Brigades (E.Q.B) the military wing of the Islamic resistance movement Hamas, mourned on Sunday morning, September 30th, 2012, the death of the Qassam member Mohammed Abdullah Hamad,22, from Al Nuseirat Refugee Camp in Central Gaza Strip.

The Brigades confirmed in a press statement released on Sunday morning, that the mujahid Mohammed was martyred during his duty, adding that he was martyred after a long bright path of Jihad, hard work, struggle and sacrifice.

Virtual candy all around!

I've noted before how Hamas "martyrs" no longer have to die while actually doing any fighting. But Hamas is now watering down it's definition of "martyr" to - pretty much anything:

Al Qassam Brigades mourns the death of the mujahed Eyad Barhoum

As Al Aqsa Intifada against the occupation assault on the Gaza Strip continues, Ezzeddeen Al-Qassam Brigades has its best men to be in the playground of death to defend their people from any attack by the enemy ... Today, Al-Qassam Brigades mourn the death of the Mujahed:

Eyad Juma'a Barhoum [39 years old]

Yibna neighborhood – Rafah City

The mujahid Eyad was martyred of heart disease in Egypt. He was martyred at dawn on Wednesday September 26th, 2012. He was martyred after a long bright path of jihad, hard work, struggle and sacrifice.

Now someone can be a martyr when they die of heart disease?

But wait...here's another:

Ezzedeen Al Qassam Brigades (E.Q.B) the military wing of the Islamic resistance movement Hamas, mourned on Wednesday evening, September 26th, 2012, the death of the Qassam member Adham Ali Shahin,28, from Al Nuseirat Refugee Camp in Central Gaza Strip.

The brigades confirmed in a press statement released on Thursday morning, that the mujahid Adham was martyred in car accident several days ago, adding that he was martyred after a long bright path of Jihad, hard work, struggle and sacrifice.

Sounds like Gaza is going through "martyr inflation." Soon every Ahmad, Mahmoud and Hazim will be described as "martyrs" when they drop dead. We'll have cancer martyrs, killed-by-kerosene-heater martyrs, and being-shot-at-wedding martyrs.

If Hamas isn't careful, there will be a shortage of ugly perpetual virgins in Paradise to spend eternity with.

Saturday night links

From Ian:

Anti-Semitism in left-wing online media

Articles critical of Israel are a magnet for anti-Semites and are used as a vehicle to express their Jew-hatred.
"The second factor is the growing social acceptability of anti-Semitism when it is cloaked as anti-Zionism. Support for the Palestinians and opposition to Israel has become a part of the orthodoxy of the contemporary political Left. The Left prides itself on its progressive, anti-racist beliefs and policies, yet when it comes to Israel, left-wing media articles and posted comments frequently cross the line into outright anti-Jewish racism."

Liberman: Abbas is the ‘main obstacle’ to peace
FM blasts PA chairman for UN speech full of ‘slander and incitement’

Poll: 70% of Americans view Israel favorably
Respondents to Foreign Policy Initiative survey list Israel as United State's second best ally in the world, second only to UK.

Video: Rice skipped Netanyahu speech at the UN

"First, the US delegation decides to stick around for one of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s speeches at the UN, and then the highest-ranking US diplomat at Turtle Bay takes a powder when Israel’s Prime Minister gets up to speak. Instead, UN Ambassador Susan Rice chose to attend a luncheon in which she wasn’t even the highest-ranking American diplomat."

Barcelona invites three Palestinians to join Gilad Shalit at match against Madrid
Hamas called for a media boycott of the Spanish soccer team following former soldier’s invitation

Border Police arrest Palestinian for attempted attack on soldier
26-year-old suspect bearing large knife admits to trying to attack IDF personnel outside Jerusalem

Video Shows Professors Teaching Anti-Semitism, Anti-Israelism
According to Dr. Charles Jacobs, APT President, one tenured professor in the Boston-based school consistently defamed Israel, and his department of Middle East Center for Peace, Culture and Development “has been built to inculcate students with a hostile and demonized view of the Jewish state, with repeated comparisons to the Nazis.”

Northeastern U's Muslim Chaplain Removed After Video Exposes Support for Terrorists

"This happened just days after we published an expose documenting that Faaruuq is a supporter of convicted Islamist terrorists who is inciting Boston Muslims against the U.S government.”

Panetta: We’ve Lost Track of Some Syrian Chemical Weapons

The U.S. has lost track of some of Syria’s chemical weapons, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said Friday, and does not know if any potentially lethal chemicals have fallen into the hands of Syrian rebels or Iranian forces inside the country.

Syrian Rebels Claim to Take Over Chemical Weapons
A statement published by the Syrian rebels says that they have taken over a military base and found missiles with non-conventional warheads.

House lawmaker blocks $450M in US aid for Egypt
The Obama administration's plan to transfer $450 million in cash to Egypt hit a roadblock Friday as a top House committee chairwoman blocked the move, saying it warrants further review.

US Embassy issues terror warning for Americans in Egypt
Citing credible threat to women engaged in missionary activities, diplomats urge citizens to exercise vigilance

Presidency asks Egyptian Consulate to monitor Eltahawy case
Eltahawy was arrested for vandalising a pro-Israel ad in a subway station at Times Square, while another woman who supported the billboard's content, Pamela Hall, was standing against the wall to prevent her from doing so.

Egypt's Copts abandon Sinai after threats, attack

Israeli wave power company to ring India with power plants

SDE will help the country avoid a repeat of last summer’s massive power failure
“Last July, India lived through a modern nightmare — a massive power failure that left some 600 million people in the dark, in the heat and out of work for days. Lesson learned: A country that strives to take its place in the modern world, touting itself as a place for multinationals to set up shop, needs a power insurance policy. And for that, India is turning to an Israeli company, SDE, which will build a series of power plants along the Indian coastline, supplying the country with power from waves.”

Also:
Dispatches From The War That Nobody Wants by Walter Russell Mead

As everybody knows, there is no such thing as a global war on terror anymore. Instead we live in a harmonious world of interfaith comity with only the occasional criminal act that is quickly and competently handled by law enforcement officials. ...We may be tired of the war on terror, but the terrorists aren’t tired of waging war on us. Far from it. They are just warming up.

Egyptian cleric involved in new constitution wants girls to marry at 14

From Bikya Masr:

An Egyptian cleric and member of the Constituent Assembly tasked with drafting Egypt’s new constitution has said that girls 14-years-old are permitted to have sexual relations under Islam and has proposed reducing the marriage age limit as a result.

“It is permissible for the girl at the age of 9 or 10 to marry,” Yassir Barhami said in discussing a woman’s sexual reproduction and his interpretation of Islam.

The Salafist – ultra-conservative – preacher claimed that under Islam when a girl begins to ovulate she is ready for marriage.

He added during a television debate on Dream TV last Tuesday that “marriage of a girl would not be a supplement for education,” but added that it “was better” to marry a girl young “than falling into sin with customary marriage.”

The cleric cited the Qur’an in arguing that any girl who is menstruating should be married and begin having children.

Manal al-Taibi, a now resigned member of the Constituent Assembly, said that this call is the promotion of child marriage and is akin to rape.

She has resigned her position on the assembly in protest to the overuse of Sharia law, or Islamic law, permeating the drafting process.

Actually, in some ways this is much worse than rape. A rape victim has legal recourse, but a girl forced into an marriage is almost always imprisoned and forced to have sex against her will for life.

Note also that Barhami is really saying that girls should be allowed to marry at 9 or 10, but he is - for now - only favoring reducing the marriage age to 14. If that effort succeeds, look to a new lowering of the age of "consent" in coming years.

(h/t Ian)

Report: Syria murdered downed Turkish pilots on Russian advice

From Al Arabiya:

As political tensions mount between neighboring Syria and Turkey, newly-leaked Syrian intelligence documents obtained by Al Arabiya disclose shocking claims shedding light on the dreadful fate of two Turkish Air Force pilots.

Contrary to what was publically claimed, the documents reveal that the pilots survived the crash, but were later executed by the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad!

On June 22, a Turkish military jet was shot down by a Syrian missile in international airspace, Ankara’s official report said; a claim Damascus has refuted.

Assad’s regime said the country’s defense forces shot down the two-seater F-4 Phantom as it was in the Syrian airspace.

However, after investigating the leaked documents it obtained, Al Arabiya can now reveal for the first time an alternative narrative of what might have happened to the two Turkish pilots.

One highly confidential document was sent directly from the presidential office of President Assad to brigadier Hassan Abdel Rahman (who Al Arabiya’s sources identify as the chief of the Syrian Special Operations Unit) states the following:

“Two Turkish pilots were captured by the Syrian Air Force Intelligence after their jet was shot down in coordination with the Russian naval base in (the Syrian city of) Tartus.”

The file therefore reveals two critical reports. First, the pilots were still alive after the plane had crashed. And second, that Russia held its share of involvement in this secretive mission.

The same document orders the concerned parties to treat both Turkish pilots according to the protocol of war prisoners, as instructed by the president.

It also requests that both men be investigated about Turkey’s role in supporting the Free Syrian Army (FSA), the country’s main armed opposition group.

The report also suggests the possibility of transferring the pilots into the neighboring Lebanese territory, leaving them in the custody of Assad’s ally, Hezbollah.

However, if the Turkish air commanders were not killed upon the crash of their F-4 Phantom, further leaked documents confirm that their death was inevitable.

A subsequently leaked file, also sent from the presidential palace and addressed to all heads of units of the Syrian foreign intelligence, reads: “Based on information and guidance from the Russian leadership comes a need to eliminate the two Turkish pilots detained by the Special Operations Unit in a natural way and their bodies need to be returned to the crash site in international waters.”

The document also suggests the Syrian government sends a “menacing” message to the Turkish government, insinuating Syria’s capability of mobilizing Kurdistan’s Workers Party (PKK) on the Turkish borders, notifying Ankara from the danger it might face in case of any hostile move.

The report insists that the Syrian leadership should hasten and make a formal apology to the Turkish government for bringing down the plane, which would embarrass the Turks and win the support of international public opinion. As such, the Syrian Regime did apologize.

The reaction from the talkbacks at the English Hurriyet paper in Turkey are mostly skeptical about the report. (The Turkish version has no talkbacks, and neither does Zaman, another Turkish paper.)

Al Arabiya claims to have received via the Syrian opposition hundreds of classified Syrian government documents which it plans to publicize in the coming days.

Administrivia - I hit my 15,000th post

I wasn't keeping track, but this "Work accident!" post from Wednesday was my 15,000th post on this blog.

Which is sort of...crazy. Cool, but crazy.

My 10,000th post was in February 2011; my 5000th in November 2008.

I have had dozens of other "work accident' posts documenting Arab terrorists blowing themselves up over the years. In 2007 and 2008 I even had the annual Splodie Awards for the best examples of terrorists dying spectacularly by their own hands or the hands of their much beloved brethren.

The amount of text I've posted is about 70 megabytes. To compare, I am told that the 26-volume 1911 edition of Encyclopedia Britannica was only 25 MB of text.

Thanks to my readers, commenters, contributors and especially thanks to those who have been sending in donations. (It's not too late....)

Weekend links

From Ian:

LATMA: The media's math and Egypt's honor

Hamas announces boycott of Barcelona FC following Shalit invite

Despite mounting pressure, soccer team invites one-time prisoner to October match against Real Madrid
“Hamas on Thursday announced a media boycott of Barcelona after the leader of the Spanish soccer league gave a complimentary ticket for an upcoming match to Gilad Shalit, the former Israeli soldier who was held captive by militants in the Gaza Strip.”

The Palestinian Authority's Policy of Duplicity by Khaled Abu Toameh

“Abbas is trying to show the US and the EU that he is serious about fighting the Hamas in the West Bank, and that is why he deserves a state and more funding. What the Americans and Europeans do not know is that many of these detainees are released within hours or days.”

The U.S. Should Throw its Support Behind an Israeli Strike by John Bolton

The odds are long, time is short, and the choice is stark. But since a nuclear-armed Iran will change the world forever, America should support an Israeli attack as the least-worst option.

No Surprise: America Under Attack Again in the Mideast by John Bolton

“President Obama’s highest priority, namely his re-election, is obviously foremost in his calculations. His “success” in Libya, overthrowing Gadhafi without U.S. casualties, now lies in tragic ruins in Benghazi. His narrative that the global war on terror is essentially over is revealed as a sham. And his claim that he could reverse decades of anti-American feelings through “outreach,” concessions and apologies, is shattered irretrievably.”

The "Obama administration and the diplomatic tsunami By DANNY DANON

Canada PM Sees Iran as “Clear and Present Danger”

Stephen Harper, Prime Minister of Canada, said the government of Iran constitutes, “unambiguously, a clear and present danger and thus demands a very sober assessment.”

Oh Canada!

Canada might very well be Israel’s best friend in the world. Many signs have been pointing in that direction for a while now.

Palestine: End the Jew Hatred – End the Conflict by David Singer

Netanyahu’s cartoon bomb wasn’t meant for world leaders, and not even for Obama

PM is hoping to convince American voters Iran is an immediate threat. Perhaps that way, the president will get the message.

AP, Reuters Reportedly Post Bibi “Heil” Photos

The Weekly Standard’s Daniel Halper flags two photos of Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu at the UN, which were reportedly pushed out on the AP and Reuters wires.

ADL slams Ahmadinejad, Farrakhan for NYC meeting

"In a press release, the ADL said the meeting of “two leading purveyors of anti-Semitism” was “yet another example of the extreme views of the Iranian government toward Jews and Israel and their attempt to promote those hateful views before an American audience by consorting with like-minded bigots."

Tunisia rape victim accused of 'indecency'

Civil society groups express outrage after woman was accused of "immoral behaviour" by policemen jailed for raping her.

State Dept. commemorates refusal to shelter Jewish refugees
Pre-Yom Kippur program focused on the St. Louis, ship sent back to Germany in 1939

How UK Can Learn From Israel's Tech Success

While it may be desirable to try to replicate the success of Israel's tech firms, it may be better to learn through collaboration.
“Israel can boast more tech start-ups per capital than any other country in the world. So what can the UK learn from the country?
Israel has listed more companies on the Nasdaq than the UK and numerous tech firms are basing their research and development centres there.”

Also:
Mordechai Kedar: The End of Oslo - and a Glimmer of Hope (h/t Akusia)

Blast targets Jewish community in Sweden

Iran's FARS "news" agency falls for a satirical Onion article:

Challah Hu Akbar on the PA's attempts to cover up a sexual harassment scandal

Elliot Abrams: Riots, Rage, Videos, Politics, and Free Speech

Just today, to take another example, I came across the most recent Palestinian Media Watch report on the defamation of Judaism in official broadcasts of the Palestinian Authority. Every religion is defamed, yet apologies appear to be expected and to be offered only in one case: Islam. The explanation is clear: only in that case is there fear of violence.

And a reader sent this in:

Saudi women defend polygamy

Saudi logic!

In Saudi Arabia, polygamy appears to be a solution for women increasingly worried about spinsterhood which is seen as associated with a “shortage” of men.

“Saudi men travel a lot and live abroad for long times. This makes them forget about marriage altogether,” Professor of sociology Ibrahim al-Anzi was quoted as saying by al-Sharq newspaper.

Left with few options, girls increasingly accept to be second wives, he said.

“When a girl reaches 30 in Saudi Arabia, she is automatically considered a spinster and that is when she accepts marrying a man that would only give her part of his time rather than not marry at all.”

According to Anzi, polygamy not only solves the problem of spinsterhood, but also curb sexual relations outside the institution of marriage.

...For Noha Ahmed, if a man decides to remarry he would do that whether his wife likes it or not.

“I would talk to him and know why he wants to remarry, then I would choose his second wife myself and even accompany him when he proposes to her.”

According to Fatima al-Ahmari, if a man wants to remarry and his wife refuses, he will start picking fights until their life together becomes unbearable.

“And then he would get married anyway. That is why women should not object to polygamy.”

...Omm Rakan argued that the prevalence of spinsterhood is mainly because neither men nor women want to take responsibilities.

“The most suitable form of relationship for them is convenience, or mesyar, marriages, but this is not feasible in our present time.”

Once you get past the brainwashing, what they are saying is that since Islam discriminates against women by allowing polygamy, women must suck it up and happily accept their second-class status.

The idea that Saudi women should be allowed to "travel a lot and live abroad for long times" just like the men is simply inconceivable.

Today's Arab media anti-semitism

Iraqi newspaper Nasiriyah has an article by someone named Osama Mubarak that reflects how many, many Arabs (and anti-semitic Westerners) think:

The world community competes to find new scientific inventions to benefit mankind, and help us in everyday life. Not surprisingly, Israel is the only entity in the world that invented things that worry and haunt the rest of the world.

In the past they invented the so-called Holocaust and physically blackmailed the world, especially Germany.

Then came the invention of Zionism and the Promised Land, which is a fake Talmudic political movement, its main objective the establishment of a Jewish homeland in Palestine, and by encouraging immigration of Jews around the world with the unlimited support of Western countries. This was not out of love of Zionism, but to get rid of the Jews and throw them amidst the Arabs.

Another invention is that of Jewish nationalism. The Jews are not a nation, as we know, but a religion, not a race or breed, but ethnic mixtures; nationalism in its true sense is the belief that one people are bound by language and culture, history, geography and interests.

And afterwards came the invention of "the state of the Jewish people," and they tell the world, especially the Arabs, that no solution to the Arab-Israeli conflict can occur without such recognition.

Among these strange and weird and deplorable inventions, a new invention is now unveled and unparalleled in world history - the so-called "Jewish refugees."

But he never explicitly said that it was Jews who faked their deaths in the Holocaust, or that Jews created the idea that they were a nation, or that Jews claim to have been expelled from Arab countries. He doesn't even say that it was Jews who invented the fake Zionist movement. No, Osama Mubarak only says that it was "them."

Morsi accused of corruption

From Egypt Independent:

A report was referred to the Public Funds Prosecution on Thursday accusing President Mohamed Morsy of profiting from his position and giving unfair advantage to business figures who are members of the Muslim Brotherhood.

Saeed Mohamed Abdullah, founder of the Independent Association to Fight Corruption, filed a report to the public prosecutor accusing Morsy of reaping profits to repay the money spent on his election campaign. Abdullah claims this amounts to LE2 billion.

According to the allegations, Morsy has still not made public the funding sources of his election campaign. The Freedom and Justice Party would not have legally been able to raise those funds.

The report also highlighted the appointment of Hassan Malek, a businessman and member of the Muslim Brotherhood, as head of the businessmen delegation. The report accuses Malek of extracting and exporting phosphate without paying any charges or taxes to the state.

This will be an interesting test to see how different the new Egypt is from the old.

Many Egyptians already see little difference:

“We changed a leader but not the regime,” said Negad Borai, a prominent lawyer and rights activist. “It is difficult to accurately assess his performance after he spent only three months in office, but he clearly has no vision and is going about governance haphazardly.”

Underscoring those fears, lawyers representing Morsi obtained a court ruling to shut down a private television station whose owner ranted against the president and the Muslim Brotherhood on air. The station’s owner and a newspaper editor are facing criminal charges.

Morsi also did not object to the imprisonment of a Christian for “insulting the president” — a seldom-used charge.

An insider at the presidential palace, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to release the information, says Morsi was not involved personally in a flurry of court cases against his critics, but the proceedings were initiated by lawyers from the Brotherhood or closely linked to the group.

He also said that decision-making is restricted to Morsi and a small group of senior Brotherhood leaders who meet at the president’s home in an upscale suburb in eastern Cairo.

Alaa al-Aswani, a bestselling novelist and rights activist, wrote Tuesday in the independent newspaper Al Masry Al Youm that the time has come to take Morsi to task.

He pointed to a series of cases in which police were accused of abusing suspects, which although nothing on the scale of the torture under Mubarak’s regime. He also noted Morsi has secured the support of the powerful state-owned media. He also charged that Morsi is suppressing freedom of expression and has failed to deliver on his promises of inclusion by allowing Islamists to dominate the drafting of a new constitution.

“The picture is now worrying,” he wrote. “It’s like nothing has changed in Egypt after the revolution except for the identity of the president — Mubarak is gone and Morsi has come.”

(h/t RK)

Arab "intellectual" says ancient Jews never lived in Israel - but in Yemen

From Ad Dostour (Jordan):

Dr. Fadel al-Rubaie denied any relationship of any kind between the Torah and Palestine, stressing that the names, places and events that came in the Torah are Yemeni names and locations, and some still exist even today.

He denies strongly that Joshua Ben-Nun had crossed the Jordan River to Jericho, and inscriptions and figures available indicate that Joshua Ben-Nun actually traveled to the land of Yemen.

This was all said in a lecture given by Dr. Rubaie on Tuesday evening in the Jordanian Writers Association Forum moderated by Dr.. Hisham Ghassib.

..Al-Rubaie in his lecture spoke of the need to re-correct the region's history, and on top of that the history of Palestine, which requires corrections to the historical narrative promoted by Orientalists that are based in their stories of the Torah that they read misleadingly. He stressed that Jerusalem is not Jerusalem, and Jews have no trace in the Palestinian territories, and if there is a housing in Palestine from the Jews it is from the sons of the Arab tribes that migrated from Arabian Peninsula.

...Israel went to revive the Hebrew language, originally a Yemeni dialect.

The lecture included a heavy presence of intellectuals and other interested members.

Al Akhbar interviewed him last year and he spouted pseudo-intellectual garbage like this:

“Give me one example in which old Jerusalem is mentioned in the Torah.” He notes that the city used to be called Ilia not Jerusalem. Therefore, there is no narrative text on Jerusalem prior to the Islamic conquest.

Um...even if you forget the entire Tanach, which mentions Jerusalem about 700 times, what about Josephus and the Christian scriptures? Not to mention the Dead Sea Scrolls?

The Torah, according to what al-Rubai has documented, refers to old Jerusalem as located in Yemen and not in Palestine. He explains, “This is what the Assyrian and Babylonian inscriptions have proven, for they refer to nine enslavement campaigns that took place in Yemen, not Palestine.” But why have historical narratives documented that the Babylonian enslavement incident as having occurred in Palestine?

Al-Rubai, who authored The Truth Behind the Babylonian Enslavement, says, “The reason lies in the monopoly over this tragic story, which was later used in the Holocaust narrative as a continuation of the historical persecution of the Jews, thus reinforcing their role as historical victims. All we need to do is to go back to the history of al-Tabari, which clearly mentions that Nebuchadnezzar’s invasion was of Yemen and not Palestine.”

Based on these controversial revelations, al-Rubai solidly concludes in his thesis that Judaism is an old Arabic religion, and the Torah is a Yemeni book. He also concludes that old Jerusalem is not present-day Jerusalem. It is located in Yemen and not Asir, as the late intellectual Kamal al-Salibi concluded in his book The Bible Came from Arabia.

Al-Rubai says, “I am not under the illusion that these ideas will prevail soon, given the presence of an enormous media power that dominates the historical narrative. It is enough to seek the documentation of our history from a critical perspective, away from the Orientalist lie. Perhaps what Edward Said has accomplished in that regard has shaken this perception to a great extent.”

Yes, this is the state of Arab intellectualism. The Jews are so powerful that they have managed to retroactively change history itself in order to profit from the Holocaust!

The question is, when will the anti-Israel Left embrace this exercise in historical revisionism themselves?