Elder Of Ziyon - Israel News

Sunday, January 20, 2013

British Islamists: "We will not stop until the whole world is governed by Islam"

Eurabia, from MEMRI:

Following are excerpts from a video of London Islamists protesting against the French military campaign in Mali. The demonstration, which was held outside the French Embassy, was posted on the Internet on January 12, 2013.

British Islamist Anjem Chaudary: We are here to expose the French regime and to say: Hands off Muslim land.
Crowd: Hands off Muslim land.
Anjem Chaudary: Hands off Muslim land.
Crowd: Hands off Muslim land.
Anjem Chaudary: Hands off Muslim land.
Crowd: Hands off Muslim land.
Anjem Chaudary: Hands off Muslim land.
Crowd: Hands off Muslim land.
Anjem Chaudary: Shari’a for Mali.
Crowd: Shari’a for Mali.
Anjem Chaudary: Shari’a for Mali.
Crowd: Shari’a for Mali.
Anjem Chaudary: Shari’a for Mali.
Crowd: Shari’a for Mali.
Anjem Chaudary: Jihad for Mali.
Crowd: Jihad for Mali.
Anjem Chaudary: Jihad for Mali.
Crowd: Jihad for Mali.
Anjem Chaudary: Jihad for Mali.
Crowd: Jihad for Mali.
Anjem Chaudary: What do we want?
Crowd: Jihad.
Anjem Chaudary: When do we want it?
Crowd: Now.
Anjem Chaudary: What do we want?
Crowd: Jihad.
Anjem Chaudary: When do we want it?
Crowd: Now.
Anjem Chaudary: Jihad!
Crowd: Jihad!
Anjem Chaudary: Jihad!
Crowd: Jihad!
Anjem Chaudary: Jihad!
Crowd: Jihad!
Anjem Chaudary: Jihad!
Crowd: Jihad!
Anjem Chaudary: Jihad!
Crowd: Jihad!
Anjem Chaudary: Say: “Allah Akbar.”
Crowd: Allah Akbar.
[...]
Anjem Chaudary: A caliphate for Mali, Somalia, Sudan, Afghanistan, Iraq... The Islamic nation is boiling. We got rid of some of our dictators – Ben Ali, Mubarak, and Al-Qadhafi. Now it’s time for the dictators in Mali, in Pakistan, in Bangladesh, and all over the Muslim lands to be removed and replaced by the shari’a, by Islam.
[...]
British Islamist: There is no god but Allah.
Crowd: There is no god but Allah.
British Islamist: Jihad for the sake of Allah.
Crowd: Jihad for the sake of Allah.
[...]
British Islamist: The call for the shari’a is a global call. It is a choice that these governments in the West will have to face up to. The shari’a is an inevitability. Therefore, you had better accept the shari’a, otherwise you will find us on your own doorsteps, outside your own embassies.
[...]
British Islamist: You talk about Freedom, you talk about democracy, but there is no freedom for Muslims to practice Islam. That is because their idols of freedom and democracy are false idols. They will burn in Hell, just like you.
[...]
Our leader is the final Messenger Muhammad. He is the Messenger. He gave us glad tidings: that we will conquer, we will lead, we will spread mercy, and we will spread justice, whether you like it or whether you don’t like it. Look to your own doorstep in France – your own French women are abandoning their Christianity and donning the hijab and the burqa.
[...]
The Muslims reached the gates of Vienna, I don’t think [unintelligible], because our eyes are on Paris, our eyes are on Brussels, our eyes are on London. We will not stop, as Muslims, until the whole world is governed by Islam.
[...]
British Islamist: My dear Muslims, for how long will we live under oppression? Isn’t it time that we united? Isn’t it time that we returned back to Allah and His Messenger? Isn’t it time that we showed support to the Muslims? Isn’t it time we support the mujahideen, because it is them who are fighting for the religion of Allah? Because of them we are able to walk with our heads high. Because of them we have honor, because of them we have dignity. Isn’t it about time, my dear Muslims? We gather together under one banner of: “There is no god but Allah,” and we support our Muslims. So French government, let that be a warning, or a piece of advice, to you. Take it the way you want, because you will never stop the army of the Muslims. You will never stop Muslims, because this nation is far too large to be stopped. This nation is like a tidal wave – when it starts, it doesn’t stop. It will conquer the east of the East and the west of the West, because that is the prophecy of our Prophet Muhammad.

Say: Allah Akbar.”
Crowd: Allah Akbar.
British Islamist: Say: Allah Akbar.”
Crowd: Allah Akbar.
Islamist (in French): What is happening today in Mali is an act of terrorism launched by François Hollande against the Muslims. This is an act of terrorism, launched by François Hollande, against the nation of Muhammad. Allah warns us in the Koran that the Jews and the Christians will never be pleased with the Muslims until they embrace their religion. What François Hollande is doing is exporting prostitution to Muslim lands, exporting homosexuality to Mali, exporting the exploitation of women to the Muslim lands. What we are saying to François Hollande is that the Muslims throughout the world will not rest until Islam dominates France, until Islam dominates the entire world. Islam will not dominate only Mali, Afghanistan, and Africa, but also France, Paris, and England. François Hollande, you must understand a few facts of life: You are a son of Pharaoh. The blood of Pharaoh courses through your veins.
[...]
The Islamic movement will become a system of life under your nose. Your wife, French women, the people of France, will live under the Islamic movement, even if you don’t like it. We will collect the jizya poll tax.
[...]
We are telling you to remove your soldiers, the unbelievers, who are in the Muslim world. But you don’t understand, you cannot see the message.
[...]
The nation of Muhammad loves death just as you love your pork. It loves death more than you love your pigs. It loves death more than you love prostitution, more than you love wine.
[...]
Shari’a for France.
Crowd: Shari’a for France.
Islamist: Shari’a for France.
Crowd: Shari’a for Paris.
Islamist: Shari’a for the world in its entirety.
Crowd: Shari’a for Europe in its entirety.
[...]
Islamist: Most of the residents of Paris are Muslims. Allah willing, most of the French system will be according to the shari’a. Most of the residents of France will be Muslims, Allah willing.
Say: “Allah Akbar.”
Crowd: Allah Akbar.

Gaza tunnel stories the media has missed

From Hamas' Al Qassam site:

Al-Mezan Center for Human Rights stated that 232 Palestinians have died while 597 others have been injured due to the working accidents in the tunnels at the Palestinian-Egyptian borders in Rafah, since 2006.

...Al-Mezan Center demanded the government in Gaza to search into the feasibility of continuing working in the tunnels in light of the continuation of human losses and the decline of its contribution to the Palestinian economy in the Gaza Strip.

You mean, the tunnels aren't the lifeline for the economy of Gaza any more? Gaza is getting its needs met from imports from the Israeli side? The media seems to have missed that story.

Of course, closing down the tunnels means closing down the arms trade to Hamas and other terror groups. So it isn't going to happen anytime soon until Hamas finds an alternative method of smuggling in weapons.

Another story they missed:

Terrorist organization Hamas is preventing the importation of goods into the Gaza Strip, as part the group`s policy seeking to reduce the importation of goods both from Israel and other external markets, without taking into consideration the needs and desires of the local population of the Gaza Strip.

The Ministry of Economy of Hamas announced its decision to prohibit the importation of several types of goods into the Gaza Strip, via the the Israeli crossings. The list of goods includes: Office furniture, various types of food, hygienic products, gas pipes, plastic bags, plastic, and clothing.

The local population in the Gaza Strip has voiced discontent over this decision, mainly due to the fact that the Israeli goods brought into the Gaza Strip are regarded as high quality and much more durable and resistant products than the merchandise smuggled into the Gaza Strip via the smuggling tunnels in the Rafah region.

Since Hamas charges high taxes from the smuggled tunnel goods it is obvious that tax revenue is more important to them than the lives of mere tunnel workers. Too bad Al Mezan didn't notice that.

Here's another Gaza tunnel story that the media is missing:
Egyptian authorities seized over 50 tons of explosives and weapons in the Sinai that were to be smuggled in those same tunnels.

Meanwhile, exports from Gaza to Europe continue to increase, with over 300 tons of strawberries and 52,000 flowers exported only last Thursday. Last Tuesday, three buses were imported to Gaza and five trucks of strawberries were exported today.

And one more Gaza tunnel story you won't see in the mainstream media today:

A Sinai security chief said Sunday that Egypt had detained ten Palestinians entering illegally from Gaza in the past three days, and would act to round up all Palestinians without permission to enter the country.

Maj. Gen. Sameeh Bashadi told Ma'an a list of names and descriptions of Palestinians who had entered Egypt through the tunnels had been distributed to all security bureaus.

He said Palestinians on the list were involved in issues related to Egypt's national security, without elaborating.

While Egypt pretends to be Hamas' best pal, the Egyptians themselves - including their security services - look at Gazans as being dangerous.

Hamas, Islamic Jihad poised to join the PLO

Dr. Ahmed Majdalani, a member of the Executive Committee of the PLO, said that it is expected that Hamas and Islamic Jihad would join the PLO after National Council elections.

This means that terror groups who urge the ethnic cleansing of Jews in the Middle East will be accepted as part of the international community at the UN. (The UN does not distinguish between the PLO and the "State of Palestine.")

The PA is subsidiary to the PLO, whose members are not elected by the people.

Islamic Jihad is even more extreme than Hamas, and their joining the PLO shows that the idea of "moderation" in that organization is a sham.

Interviewed in the Al-Quds newspaper, Majdalani said that the negotiations between Fatah and Hamas in Cairo are resulting in a mechanism for new elections not only in the territories but also for Palestinian Arabs who live abroad. In general, they are more radical.

Somehow, I'm missing the IDF abuse on this video (UPDATED)

The anti-Israel crowd is pushing this video of supposed IDF cruelty in arresting a mother with her baby:

It looks to me as if they arrested her as gently as humanly possible while she was screaming and treating her precious child like a rag doll (see 0:53.)

Not to mention taking her baby to a closed military zone in the first place where she knows very well that there is the possibility of tear gas.

As far as I can tell, the IDF is being more careful with the welfare of the baby than her mother is. In fact, I'd say that the mother is using her daughter as a human shield.

I also notice that there are some unexplained edits in the video. Usually, that means that the "victim" is pushing or hitting the IDF soldiers but the "activists" are careful to ensure that she only appears as a victim so they carefully cut out the problematic parts.

UPDATE: Aaron Gross found a longer version, but it still has two crucial edits. And the women is shown using her baby more as a prop than as a child:

Even in this longer version, the IDF is extraordinarily careful not to use undue force.

Saturday night links

From Ian:

Into the Fray: Liar
If integrity is a necessary quality for reputable journalism, Jeffrey Goldberg’s recent column is a disgrace to his profession – and an insult to Israelis’ intelligence.

"I apologize to my readers if the tone of this column is more abrasive that usual. But Jeffrey Goldberg’s column this week (January 14) published by Bloomberg titled “Obama: Israel Doesn’t Know What Its Best Interests Are,” is so infuriatingly impudent, so deceptively disingenuous, so maliciously misleading, so pretentiously pompous that it strains the bounds of civility to almost impossible limits."

Sarah Honig: Concern in Cairo

"The international community does not seem to care. Although they once honored and feted Mubarak, world leaders abruptly changed tack, branded him a tyrannical ogre and cheered his opponents as harbingers of the “Arab Spring.” The truth is that while hardly a democratic paragon, Mubarak was not the worst of Mideastern autocrats.
Furthermore, Morsi, who has officially put himself above the law, has seen demonstrators killed under his watch as well. Then there are his radical Muslim proclivities, including his recently disclosed past comments where he exhorted his compatriots to “nurse our children and our grandchildren on hatred.” Elsewhere, he depicted Jews and Zionists as “bloodsuckers” and as “the descendants of apes and pigs.”

Behind the Lines: A Gulf apart

Gulf monarchies are sharply divided on how to respond to the Muslim Brotherhood threat. While Saudi Arabia, UAE see the Brotherhood as a danger to stability, longevity of the monarchies, Qatar embraces it as an ally.

Algerian Terrorists Demand Swap of American Hostages for Blind Sheikh

"House Homeland Security Committee chairman Rep. Michael McCaul told Breitbart News on Friday that it’s “no surprise” Algerian terrorists are demanding a swap of the Blind Sheikh for American hostages."

France’s Jewish Security Service Warns Mali Operation “Significantly Increases” Threat Facing Jews

“The situation requires we raise the level of protection around our community and double the level of vigilance around synagogues, Jewish schools, community centers and gathering places,” said a communiqué by SPCJ."

French city Lyon briefly evacuates metro on bomb alert

France is on high alert and has stepped up army patrols of public buildings and transport networks as Islamist militant groups have threatened revenge attacks for France's military campaign against al Qaeda-linked rebels in Mali.

Hagel funded group pushing talks with al-Qaida

"Secretary of defense nominee Chuck Hagel sits on the small board of a peace fund that finances an international “crisis management” group that long has petitioned the Algerian government to cease “excessive” military activities against al-Qaida-linked jihadists, WND has learned."
"ICG petitioned for the Islamist group to participate in the Algerian government.
Hagel serves on the board of The Ploughshares Fund, a George Soros-financed fund that pushes for a nuclear-free world."

CAMERA: NYT Indicts Israel's Democracy... Again

"A social media campaign by Arabs aimed at Arabs is not a sign that Israel’s democracy is sick. It is evidence of the freedom of political speech enjoyed by Israeli Arabs. And a frustration with ineffective politicians is again not a symptom of a weak democracy. It’s the universal condition of voters. The thesis of the article is that voter turnout among the Arab minority might dip below 50 percent and this is evidence that Israel’s democracy is under threat."

Turkish Construction Firm Goes Bankrupt After Sponsoring Antisemitic Films

"A Turkish construction firm that sponsored an antisemitic film and has featured the film’s actors in advertisement campaigns has gone bankrupt. According to Turkey’s Hurriyet daily, a court has passed an injunction protecting Ukra İnşaat against its creditors. The Istanbul-based firm recently requested a delay in proceedings, which will be considered at the conclusion of the current legal process."
"Actors Necati Şaşmaz and Gürkan Uygun, both of whom star in the “Valley of the Wolves,” film series, played in the firm’s commercials. The company also sponsored films such as “Valley of the Wolves Palestine” and “Av Mevsimi” (Hunting Season). According to the report, the company spent $2.5 million on a commercial with Uygun that ran last November."

Christian stores burned in southern Egypt after Muslim girl allegedly sexually assaulted

Police fired tear gas to disperse hundreds of Muslim protesters outside a church in southern Egypt Friday. The demonstrators were demanding an investigation into allegations that a Christian man sexually assaulted a 6-year-old girl.

UN Security Council split on Syria war crimes
While some member states urge the world body to send the problem to the International Criminal Court, others remain undecided

Jordan’s Islamists, opposition rally against vote
Muslim Brotherhood members and youth activists call for boycott of parliament elections, saying freedom is ‘not a royal gift’

Bail $1.22M for Saudi sergeant in Vegas rape case
Aircraft mechanic jailed since New Year’s Eve on charges of raping a minor will plead not guilty, says defense attorney

From Ben-Gurion to Africa with Love

"A delegation including nine BGU students are currently in the city of Makele in Ethiopia, taking part in an extensive educational medical program which aims to eliminate neglected tropical diseases. The program, led by Prof. Zvi Bentwich for the last four years, is being implemented by the Faculty of Health Science’s Center for Emerging Diseases, Tropical Diseases and AIDS (CEMTA) with the assistance of other bodies, including UN organizations, local government agencies and the Israeli Foreign Ministry."

Israeli technology perks up new Corvette
Plasan Sasa’s cutting edge technologies took central stage with the unveiling of the 2014 king of American sports cars.

"Plasan is a Kibbutz Sasa company better known for its very dense plastic composite product that affords ballistic protection without significantly adding to the weight of the vehicle. For years, the Pentagon has looked to Plasan to keep American soldiers safe in Afghanistan and Iraq.
In a bid to win back some of the Corvette’s glory, General Motors turned to Plasan’s technology to reduce mass while increasing strength.
Plasan’s handprints can be found on C7’s front fenders, doors, rear quarter panels, and the rear hatch panel that were all made with the lighter-density sheet molding compound than the car’s previous generation."

Latest photos of Concentration Camp Gaza

This is a photo essay of Islamic University in Gaza from Palestine Times:

More on this wonderful university, and its history with terrorism, here and here.

"Israel gives prisoners dog medicine"

Last week, Arabs Today came up with a new one:

A campaigner for the human rights group, the Hurriyat Centre has accused Israeli prisons of treating Palestinian prisoners who fall ill with dog medicine. In a statement Ibtisam Annata, a lawyer at the Centre said a prisoner had told her that he suffered with back pain during his detention in Raymond prison prompting the doctor in charge to prescribe him with medicine used to treat dogs.

He continued to take it for several years. Other inmates revealed that many of them had been prescribed the same medicine by prison doctors. Annata condemned the practice as “inhumane” and accused the doctors of“punishing and torturing the prisoners with a slow and painful death.”She added that she feared the prisoners put their lives at further risk by exposing these crimes to the media.

No worries on that last point, Ms. Annata. The only "media" to pick up on this laughingly stupid story was - you guessed it - Mondoweiss, where any anti-Israel rumor is swallowed and regurgitated no matter how obviously made up.

The website for the Hurryyat Center does not have this story, although it has plenty of unverified stories about how terrible things are in Israeli prisons. I'd love to hear a statement from them on this.

(h/t Dan)

Lotsa links for Shabbat

From Ian:

Latma: Shimon Peres on the elections and the campaigners behind the election ads

Facebook's "Accidental Mistake" and Free Speech in the Arab World by Khaled Abu Toameh

“Many Palestinian journalists, and those in the Middle East, are forced to use Facebook to publish what their own media will not accept. But the problem becomes worse when Facebook itself starts removing material that bothers dictatorships and tyrants. One can only hope that the same Facebook employee who "accidentally" removed the article will make the same mistake and close down the accounts belonging to terrorist organizations and their leaders. It is the duty of Facebook and Western societies to side with those seeking freedom, and not to be complicit in suppressing their voices.”

Chomsky and the Terror Masters

“Interviewed on Lebanese television, Chomsky gave further insight into his political allegiances. “The policies of Hamas,” he insisted, “are more forthcoming and more conducive to a peaceful settlement than those of the United States or Israel… The policies, in my view, are unacceptable, but preferable to the policies of the United States and Israel.” Viewers may well have been perplexed at the sight of this Jewish academic who apparently considers the demand for the murder of all Jews – clearly stated in the Hamas covenant – preferable to Israel’s official support for the two-state solution.”

Missing Peace: Hamas leader Abu Marzouq: never negotiations with Israel

"The intransigence of Hamas is no news but in light of the reconciliation talks between Hamas and Fatah Marzouq remarks should function as a wake up call to European leaders. They view Palestinian unity as an important element to reach a solution in the Mid East conflict."

Hamas Tries to Limit Israeli Imports into Gaza
Hamas bans certain types of Israeli goods into Gaza. Israel nevertheless continues supplying goods.

“Hamas’ Ministry of Economics announced this week its decision to ban the import of certain types of goods into Gaza through the Israeli crossings. These include office furniture, various types of foods, hygiene products, gas pipes, plastic, plastic bags and clothing.
The local population in Gaza expressed its dissatisfaction with the decision, especially since the Israeli products that enter Gaza are considered to be of much higher quality than the goods that are smuggled into Gaza from Egypt, through the tunnels in the Rafiah area.”
“In addition, noted COGAT, 301 tons of strawberries, and 52,000 flowers units were exported from Gaza this week. The export was coordinated by the Gaza Coordination and Liaison Administration through the Kerem Shalom crossing.”

Burgas bombing: It was Hezbollah
Israel's Channel 2 has announced that the Bulgarian foreign minister's report to Israel shows that Hezbollah was responsible for the Burgas bombing last year

"The Israeli Channel 2 further commented that Bulgarian Interior Minister,Tsvetan Tsvetanov also left the country to brief European leaders about the results of the investigation in the attack.
The Interior Ministry's press office reported Thursday that Tsvetanov was in Dublin for talks with European Union ministers and was expected to update Bulgaria's EU allies with the latest news. This has been interpreted as a step ahead in the effort to have the EU declare that the attack was masterminded by Hezbollah."

NYT Columnist Retweets Message Comparing AIPAC to Pigs
New York Times columnist came under fire for retweeting a message that referred to AIPAC and NRA as “the 2 most pig like lobbies” in US.

"According to Adam Kredo of The Washington Free Beacon, Columnist Nicholas Kristof on Wednesday afternoon retweeted the message written by longtime Israel critic M.J. Rosenberg, which recalled the recently unearthed statements by Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi that referred to Jews as “pigs.”

CIF Watch: Jonathan Freedland’s Illusions About the Nature of Modern Antisemitism

"White supremacists, and other extreme right-wing groups, don’t have a platform at ‘Comment is Free’, while Islamist extremists who are affiliated with groups openly calling for the murder of Jews (and, no, not merely Zionists) are routinely provided a platform by Guardian editors – evidently motivated by the risible belief that such violent radicals are giving voice to genuinely “progressive” values."

BBC corrects Morsi video article
In addition to this very welcome step, it would of course be appropriate for the BBC to explain to its audiences how that very problematic reference got there in the first place.

BBC Q&A on US State Department promotes dead baby story from Gaza

"Did the BBC editor who selected the questions to be publicized in this Q&A session even bother to check out the obviously propagandist motivations of the questioner? Or was the chance to once again plug this much-touted item - the circumstances of which the BBC has still not bothered to verify - just too much to resist?”

MEMRI: Egyptian Cleric: War with Israel Is the Dream of My Life; No Such Thing as a Christian Religion

Moroccan Salafis condemn French war in Mali as ‘Zionist crusade’

"Another radical Islamist, Abderrazak Ajah, said Moroccans must “choose between supporting the Islamist fighters as best we can or the Zionist crusade and its agents,” also posting his comments on social media."

Egyptian protestors attack Morsi look-a-like
A 56 year old man mistaken for President Morsi was dragged toward a tent outside the Presidential palace, nearly beaten up, then posed for picture with his assailants

Netanyahu wins Norris nod
Action star comes out swinging, says Israel has its own ‘tough guy’ in prime minister

Peres: “I Stand in Awe” of Warsaw Ghetto Fighters

"Addressing those present who took part in the uprising, Peres said: “To sit between you is to sit between a legend and a dream. It is hard to fathom the heights of your bravery. One cannot understand the depth of the Nazi atrocities when compared alongside the heroic bravery of the Warsaw Ghetto fighters. I stand in awe of the heroism of the fighters and am shocked, to this day, by the Nazi hatred.”

Israeli Daily Picture: Tunisia, Another Vanishing Jewish Community in the Moslem World

We Uncover 150-Year-Old Pictures of One Family in Three Different Collections
"In the 1940s the Jewish population in the Arab world numbered between 850,000 and one million. They were integrated into their societies, although over history they were often subjected to religious persecution and even pogroms. Some Jewish families were wealthy and owned considerable property."

Also:

Our Syrian Allies Reveal Bashar Assad Is Jewish! (BlazingCatFur, via Sophie)

Don’t be fooled: Iran wants the bomb: (h/t Josh)

But a lie remains a lie, whether it is repeated ceaselessly in international forums or broadcast all day to the Iranian masses. As a former employee of the Iranian foreign ministry, I served as interpreter for visiting dignitaries, diplomats and officials. I paid close attention to public proclamations and official statements. And I was present at inner-circle conversations in which a number of high-profile Iranian officials made no secret of their intention to go atomic. I personally witnessed the following examples:

White House Confronting–Sort of–Egyptian President’s Frothing Hatred of Jews Reveals Its Deeper Policy Thinking (Barry Rubin)

It isn’t just pathetic but also weird that educated Euro-North Americans who are eager to destroy the career of anyone who has ever uttered a single sentence that was or can be portrayed as hate speech will accept those who issue whole reams of the stuff. What is truly ridiculous about this kind of controversy is the outrage or apologia over one statement. In fact, Mursi and the Muslim Brotherhood leadership including leading figures in the ruling party have made hundreds of radical statements. They are either ignored or explained away as insignificant.

Petition: Denounce Arab Lawyers Union honoring suicide bomber (h/t HuffWatcher)

In October 2012, the Palestine Committee of the Arab Lawyers Union (ALU) awarded its "highest honor . . . in esteem for any lawyer in the Arab Homeland" to female Palestinian suicide bomber and law student Hanadi Jaradat. In 2003, Jaradat left the legal profession by blowing herself up at the Maxim restaurant in Haifa, Israel, killing 21 and injuring more than 50. Among the deceased were three children and an infant.

We, The Lawfare Project and other members of the legal community, urge ECOSOC, UNESCO, ILO, and other organizations affiliated with the ALU to sever official ties with the latter, as well as to publicly denounce the ALU's decision to praise a suicide attack.

Which Prime Minister Built the Most Homes in the Settlements? (Jewish Press)

PA plans future "Bab al-Shams"-type protests

From ArabsToday:

Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Salam Fayyad spoke to Arabstoday exclusively about the Bab al-Shams [“Gate of the Sun” in Arabic] Palestinian protest camp...

Fayyad said that “attacking the village and evacuating it is not the end of the battle. There will be more Bab al-Shams.”

The Prime Minister exclusively told Arabstoday that the Palestinian Authority’s Local Government Minister had been assigned with appointing a special committee for this end - to manage Bab al-Shams and other Occupy-style camps like it, with “all necessary measures” being taken to protect the project.

Sounds like another violation of Oslo by the PA, if anyone still keeps track of those.

The good news is that if the PA is now taking over the protests, we know they will go nowhere.

By the way, the name of the area is Mevasseret Adumim.

12 killed in airstrike on Palestinian Arab camp - and no one reports it

From Radio Sawa:

11 people were killed, including seven children and three women, on Thursday in an air strike that targeted a Palestinian refugee camp near Husseiniya of Sayeda Zeinab south of Damascus.

According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, the warplanes targeted the camp with three missiles.

UNRWA says 12 Palestinian Arabs were killed.

Good luck finding any major Western media reporting this. The value of Palestinian Arab lives is directly proportional to the involvement of Jews in their deaths.

By the way, the International Solidarity Movement is completely silent on the 900 Palestinians killed in Syria so far. Their "solidarity" is quite selective, apparently.

What a surprise - Iran again denies IAEA access to Parchin

From VOANews:

The chief United Nations nuclear inspector says no deal has been reached with Iran to investigate that nation's controversial nuclear program, but that a meeting will take place next month on the issue.

International Atomic Energy Agency team leader Herman Nackaerts said Friday that two days of "intensive discussions" in Tehran failed to produce an agreement on access to Iranian nuclear facilities.

Citing unspecified "differences," Nackaerts said the two sides could not agree on a structured approach to resolve outstanding issues. He said another round of talks will take place February 12 in Tehran.

The IAEA had hoped to gain access to the Parchin military site, which Western nations suspect is related to nuclear weapons development. Iran says it is a conventional military site and that its nuclear program is strictly for peaceful purposes.

No need to worry, though:

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast said Tuesday that a religious decree issued by Iran's supreme leader banning nuclear weapons is binding on the Iranian government.

To see why the people who rely on this fatwa are idiots, read this.

(h/t Washington Guardian)

Max Blumenthal lies, again

Ha'aretz on March 22, 2006, reported:

Police and the Shin Bet security service foiled a suicide bombing yesterday that was planned for the Tel Aviv region. After a dramatic chase, police stopped a commercial vehicle carrying the suspected suicide bomber and eight other Palestinians near Kibbutz Sha'alvim, on Route 1, from Jerusalem to Tel Aviv. Police said that the suspect, an Islamic Jihad activist from the Jenin area, was carrying a bag containing between five and seven kilograms of explosives.

The Islamic Jihad network in the northern West Bank claimed responsibility for the planned attack. That network has been responsible for the last seven suicide bombings, which killed 26 Israelis.

Here is a AP photo taken after the high speed chase when Israeli special forces stripped and handcuffed the suspects:

Now, seven years later, Max Blumenthal tweets:

Blumenthal is implying that this is how Israel's border police act all the time. And he has dozens of worshipful fans who believe every lie he spouts.

Blumenthal pretends to be a journalist, but even if he was not aware of the provenance of the photo, any journalist worth the title would do a tiny amount of fact checking. And any newspaper who employs a reporter who tweets something so outrageous without checking would fire him on the spot.

This all just goes to prove, yet again, that the Israel-haters care not one whit about telling the truth.

(h/t Huffington Post Monitor via Ian)

Arabs succeeding on Israeli reality TV

Al Monitor has an article by Shlomi Eldar claiming that Israeli Jews are increasingly racist and hateful towards their fellow Arab citizens.

[Arabs] are increasingly perceived by the Jewish majority as undeserving of even the most basic rights. The attitude taking root in Israel today is that Arabs are not part of the nation’s social fabric, that they should either be evicted or penned in, and that they deserve to lose their citizenship.

He then claims that the only place that Israelis see Arabs as human beings is reality TV.

His argument is a bit undercut when he shows how often Arabs are winning the reality TV audience voting. If Israeli Jews were such bigots, why would they vote for those that (Eldar claims) they hate?

It all began with "Project Y," the first reality show ever aired in Israel. The winner, Faris Huri, was a young Israeli Arab, and his victory was seen as an expression of pluralism and acceptance of the other. That show was aired more a decade ago. Since then, there has been increasing hatred and hostility in Israel. Nonetheless, the power of reality television to present an alternative Arab face has only gotten stronger.

In 2006, Niral Karantinji, a young Muslim from Haifa, participated in "Israel’s Next Top Model." On this show, the Israeli public was introduced to a beautiful, bold young woman, photographed in swimwear and revealing clothes and shattering conventions along the way. She may have been rejected by the other contestants, not least because of her origins — but the Israeli public voted for her anyway, and she ended up winning the show. She was the judges' choice, but she was the audience's choice as well.

Two years ago, Futna Jaber, a restaurant-owner from Jaffa, became a housemate on "Big Brother." Jaber later went on to become a popular celebrity on talk shows and cooking shows. In doing so, she presented a very different message about the status of Arab women than the preconceived notions that can be deeply rooted in Israel's Jews.

Then there is "A Star Is Born," which has emerged in recent years as the proverbial campfire where all of Israel gathers and shares its songs and stories in one big jamboree. This is a seminal show that shapes and influences Israeli society, and one of its contestants, Miriam Tukan from the village of Iblin, made it all the way to ninth place. Tukan performed Israeli classics with a thick Arabic accent, stunning the judges and audience alike. A beautiful young Israeli Arab took songs that are hallmarks of Israeli culture, plucked them out of their natural setting and put a whole new twist on them — and it worked. People loved it.

But beyond a doubt the person who showed off the Arab community in a way that many Jews had never seen them before was Salma Fayumi from Kfar Kassem, who was a contestant on "Master Chef." Fayumi, a nurse with a master’s degree, is a devout Muslim who wears the hijab. She is one of the most impressive reality stars to appear on television in years. Yes, she looks like an Arab, but apart from her appearance, it is virtually impossible to pigeonhole her. Her Hebrew is fluent and rich, and her sense of humor is tantalizingly self-deprecating. She is good-looking, educated and a wonderful cook. This is the stuff that reality stars are made on.

The supposed racism of Israeli Jews doesn't jive with these successes (and there are lots of other Arab contestants who have done well in Israeli reality shows as well.)

Of course there are Jews who are bigoted against Arabs, but too many on Israel's Left exaggerate the phenomenon in order to score points with their audience and to demonize parts of their own society.

I'm not seeing too many self-flagellating articles in the US media about racism in America today - even though a recent poll showed 51% of Americans have explicitly negative attitudes towards blacks. Somehow, they managed to elect a black President - twice.

Bigotry exists everywhere on the planet, but it is not a defining attitude in Israeli society just as it isn't in the US.

Too bad there are no Shlomi Eldars in any Arab countries who are willing to make a stand where it really matters. Maybe he can write about that one day.

Egyptian Hebrew professors accused of sexual harassment, extortion

From Egypt Independent:

Female students at the Ain Shams University Faculty of Arts sent a complaint to media outlets accusing their professors of sexual harassment. The National Council for Women demanded that the dean and the minister of higher education immediately begin investigations into the charges.

The students said they had to resort to the media because the university administration did not investigate the matter.

Leila Aboul Magd, head of the faculty’s Hebrew department, told the privately owned ONTV satellite channel on Wednesday that the students had shown her evidence of the harassment.

Other students are afraid to come out against the professors in case they are failed in their courses as retribution, she added.

At least five professors would extort either sexual favors or money from female students in order to access the same course materials that everyone else was able to get freely. One would troll female students' Facebook pages and make suggestive remarks based on their personal information.

All of the accused professors work for the Hebrew Language department.

Who would have thought that the people who are the supposed experts on the Zionist enemy would be so immoral?

Hagel and Shultz

One of the major reasons that pro-Israel groups are upset over the nomination of Chuck Hagel for Secretary of Defense is his mention of the "Jewish Lobby" in the context that he, unlike his fellow senators at the time, was not beholden to those pesky Jews.

One of the best essays written that demolishes the idea of an all-powerful Israel lobby was written by George Shultz, former secretary of state in the Reagan administration, in 2007:

Israel is a free, democratic, open, and relentlessly self-analytical place. To hear harsh criticism of Israel's policies and leaders, listen to the Israelis. So questioning Israel for its actions is legitimate, but lies are something else. Throughout human history, they have been used not only to vilify but to establish a basis for cruel and inhuman acts. The catalog of lies about Jews is long and astonishingly crude, matched only by the suffering that has followed their promulgation.

Defaming the Jews by disputing their rightful place among the peoples of the world has been a long-running, well-documented, and disgraceful series of episodes across history. Again and again a time has come when legitimate criticism slips across an invisible line into what might be called the "badlands," a place where those who should be regarded as worthy adversaries in debate are turned into scapegoats, targets, all-purpose objects of blame.

In America, we protect all speech, even the most hurtful lies. We allow a virtual free-for-all by which laws are adopted, enforced, and interpreted. Hundreds of millions of dollars are spent yearly to influence this process; thousands of groups vie for influence. Among these are Jewish groups that have come under renewed criticism for being part of an all-powerful "Israel lobby," most notably in a book published this week by Profs. Stephen Walt and John Mearsheimer.

Jewish groups are influential. They also largely agree that the United States should support Israel. But the notion that they have anything like a uniform agenda and that U.S. policy in Israel and the Middle East is the result of this influence is simply wrong.

One choice. Some critics seem overly impressed with the way of thinking that says to itself, "Since there is a huge Arab Islamic world out there with all the oil, and it is opposed to this tiny little Israel with no natural resources, then realistically the United States has to be on the Arab side and against Israel on every issue, and since this isn't the case, there must be some underhanded Jewish plot at work." This is a conspiracy theory, pure and simple.

Another tried and true method for damaging the well-being and security of the Jewish people and the State of Israel is a dangerously false analogy. Witness former President Jimmy Carter's book Palestine—Peace Not Apartheid. Here the association on the one hand is between Israel's existentially threatened position and the measures it has taken to protect its population from terrorist attacks, driven by an ideology bent on the complete eradication of the State of Israel, and, on the other, the racist oppression of South Africa's black population by the white Boer regime.

The tendency of mind that lies behind such repulsive analogies remains and is reinforced by the former president's views, spread across his book, which come down on the anti-Israel side of every case. These false analogies stir up and lend legitimacy to more widely based movements that take the same dangerous direction.

Anyone who thinks that Jewish groups constitute a homogeneous "lobby" ought to spend some time dealing with them. For example, my decision to open a dialogue with Yasser Arafat after he met certain conditions evoked a wide spectrum of responses from the government of Israel, its political parties, and American Jewish groups who weighed in on one side or the other. Other examples in which the United States rejected Israel's view of an issue, or the view of the American Jewish community, include the sale of arms to Saudi Arabia and President Reagan's decision to go to the cemetery at Bitburg, Germany.

The United States supports Israel not because of favoritism based on political pressure or influence but because the American people, and their leaders, say that supporting Israel is politically sound and morally just.

We are a great nation. Mostly, we make good decisions. We are not babes in the woods. We act in our own interests. And when we mistakenly conclude from time to time—as we will—that an action or policy is in America's interest, we must take responsibility for the mistake.

So, on every level, those who blame Israel and its Jewish supporters for U.S. policies they do not support are wrong. They are wrong because, to begin with, support for Israel is in our best interests. They are also wrong because Israel and its supporters have the right to try to influence U.S. policy. And they are wrong because the U.S. government is responsible for the policies it adopts, not any other state or any of the myriad lobbies and groups that battle daily—sometimes with lies—to win America's support.

The irony is that when Shultz was nominated for Secretary of State, the pro-Israel lobby was against him - especially his ties to Arab regimes through his position at Bechtel. He was replacing Alexander Haig, who was regarded as very pro-Israel, and he started off his term with some pro-Palestinian Arab statements.

Within a year, however, Shultz became very pro-Israel (a change that may have come about after the Hezbollah bombing of the Marine barracks in Lebanon.) His essay above shows his identification with the Jewish state. (The Arab lobby in Washington was absolutely crushed by Shultz' apparent change of heart.)

The chances that Hagel will end up with an epiphany like Shultz seem remote, unfortunately.

More likely, he will act towards Israel like the fellow Bechtel appointee and Secretary of Defense under Reagan, Caspar Weinberger.

Jordanian columnist uses "The Onion" as his news source

From the Ammon News (Jordan), by Jafar M Ramini:

Is the whole world under Zionist occupation? This might sound cynical, if not outright provocative but please bear with me.

I am sure that you are all aware of the fury of the Zionists over the appointment of Chuck Hagel as the new Secretary of State. A fury that made Mark Regef, spokesman for Mr. Netanyahu, say openly that if this appointment went ahead, Israel would wield the veto that it holds over Washington. Yes, little Israel has power of veto over the mighty goliath that is the United States of America.

Where is the source for this Mark Regev quote? Why, it comes from "America's finest news source," The Onion, in this satirical piece published last week:

Top-ranking government officials in Jerusalem confirmed Tuesday that Israel would exercise its longstanding, constitutionally granted veto power over American policy if U.S. lawmakers confirmed retired congressman Chuck Hagel as the United States’ next Secretary of Defense. “In light of Mr. Hagel’s worrying remarks on Israeli-Palestinian relations and questionable classification of Israeli interests as ‘the Jewish lobby,’ we consider him a highly inappropriate choice for Defense Secretary who stands far out of line with our national priorities, and therefore we are prepared to swiftly and resolutely use our official veto power over this U.S. action,” said Israeli government spokesperson Mark Regev of the legal maneuver that the small Middle Eastern nation has employed to block U.S. Cabinet nominees, U.S. legislation, U.S. international relations, and U.S. domestic policy over 1,400 times in its 64-year history. “Because congress does not possess the necessary nine-tenths majority to override an Israeli veto, they’ll have no choice but to head back to the drawing board and provide a Defense Secretary whom we find more suitable.”

When your entire mind is already filled with hate, there leaves little room for thinking.

Thursday Linkim

From Ian:

Isi Leibler: Liberal Jewish Israel bashers: Ignorant or malicious?

One becomes increasingly convinced that many Jewish liberals have closed minds and do not wish to be enlightened.
“One would wish to believe that much of the condemnation of Israel by liberal Jews, compounded by purportedly being grounded on Jewish values, is not malicious but based on ignorance. The blame for such behavior could then be directed solely toward Israel’s failure to convey the reality of our situation.
Yet sadly, one becomes increasingly convinced that many Jewish liberals have closed minds and do not wish to be enlightened, because their principal motivation is to demonstrate to their “progressive” friends that they are more open-minded, universal and tolerant than their “bigoted” Israeli kinsmen.”

"There is no two-state solution" says Palestinian Ambassador to Britain

The Palestinian Ambassador to the UK last night told an audience in the British Parliament that Israel cannot exist forever 'as a pariah state' and that the country 'nurtures on conflict'
"In a controversial speech hosted by the virulently anti-Israel Member of Parliament, Jeremy Corbyn, Manuel Hassassian reportedly told an audience of around 100 people that, “there is no two state solution”.
The event was organised by the controversial Palestine Solidarity Campaign and hosted Labour’s Shadow Justice Minister Andy Slaughter, as well as Lib Dem MP and former government minister Sarah Teather."

Abbas needs to be replaced

"This is nothing new; in the past, Palestinians have rejected attempts to alleviate the conditions of their refugees by resettling. They kept the refugees, and millions of their descendants, as a political card. Moreover, the refugees constitute an important element in their self-propagated image of victimhood and martyrdom.Instead of helping his people in distress, Abbas, in the best Palestinian tradition, prefers to cling to the right of return – a demand that no Israeli government is ever going to accept. Moreover, most of the international community rejects this Palestinian demand, understanding that there is broad consensus in Israel against a mass influx of Palestinians that could destroy its Jewish character."

Freed Terrorist to Head Fatah in Gaza
In a surprise move, Abbas names former terrorist prisoner as secretary gen. for Gaza, angering current Fatah leaders.

50 Arabs Attack Rachel's Tomb
About 50 Arabs hurled pipe bombs, fire bombs and rocks at security forces. One soldier lightly hurt.

Israelis Safe After Road Terror in Eastern Gush Etzion
PA Arabs hurled rocks at Israeli motorists in another road terror attack on a road in eastern Gush Etzion Wednesday afternoon.

CIF Watch: Guardian readers, and Holocausts real and imagined

"The Guardian’s attempt to provide a thoughtful and appropriate article about a praiseworthy attempt by UK footballers to provide schools with a serious and sensitive Holocaust educational film documenting what they learned from a trip to Auschwitz (‘England’s football stars feature in Holocaust educational video film for schools, Jan. 14), was quickly hijacked, as we noted earlier, by Holocaust deniers."

BBC Watch: BBC tones down Morsi’s support for terrorism against all Israelis

"The BBC article states: “In the clip from Palestinian broadcaster Al-Quds TV, Mr Morsi referred to Jewish settlers as “occupiers of Palestine” and “warmongers”.
He called for a “military resistance in Palestine against these Zionist criminals assaulting the land of Palestine and Palestinian”.”
"Secondly, Morsi makes no reference whatsoever to “Jewish settlers” in his antisemitic, terror-glorifying rant: that phrase is an invention by the BBC. In fact, Morsi speaks of “Zionists”, by which he means all Israeli Jews – regardless of whether they live on one side or the other of the ‘green line’ – the existence of which Morsi clearly says he does not recognize."

[UPDATE: The BBC issued a correction.]

Arabic Rapper Says U.S. and Israel to Blame for Palestinians Not Sending Man to the Moon

"Tamer Nafar of the Arabic hip hop band DAM says the group’s latest album was inspired by the contrast between NASA’s space exploration and the digging of smuggling tunnels between Gaza and Egypt. He tells the pro-Palestinian website Electronic Intifada that the “occupation” and the U.S. are to blame for hindering Palestinian space exploration ambitions."

Rand Paul: Obama ‘arrogant and presumptuous’ about Israel

“That’s an arrogant and presumptuous point of view and doesn’t further progress on anything,” the senator said, and he returned to that view throughout the call as he discussed the location of Israel’s capital and Israeli settlements. Paul decried U.S. politicians who display “this flippant and arrogant” attitude about internal Israeli affairs, saying that “no one can really know as much as people in the region” about such matters. “It is not up to the U.S. to dictate” to mayors and West Bank officials where housing goes, Paul added."

Iran to deploy warships to Mediterranean in show of force
Navy commander says 24th fleet to fan out across the region and ‘counter threats’ to the Islamic Republic

German court convicts Holocaust-denying bishop
Richard Williams fined $2,400 for claiming Jews weren’t killed in gas chambers

Google Play App Offers ‘Inspiring’ Hitler Quotes

"Available on Google Play, the app store for Android products, one app that goes by the name, Infamous Adolf Hitler Quotes opens with this description: “Looking for Adolf Hitler Quotes?? Then this is the App for you!”

Italian soccer players honor coach killed in Holocaust
Mayors of Milan and Bologna attend tribute to Arpad Weisz, who led squads from both cities

EU places Holocaust memorial on official calendar
Commemoration will honor the Warsaw ghetto uprising and Swedish diplomat Raoul Wallenberg

Homegrown jet defense system proves successful
Elbit says its new anti-missile system, designed for use on commercial aircraft, passed muster in tests

Meet René: The IDF’s First Ever Swiss-Bedouin Medic

"Sgt. René Elhozayel is a perfect example of what the IDF calls the ‘kur hituch’, or melting pot. One of his parents is Bedouin, and the other a Swiss Jew — he celebrates both Eid al-Adha and Passover. One day, he hopes to become a doctor. René agreed to sit down with us and talk about his unique IDF journey. Here’s his story."

In Israel, Clean Tech is Not a New Thing

"Sounding more like a clean tech venture capitalist than a head of state, David Ben Gurion, the first prime minister of Israel, once said that Israel requires “the study of desalination, massive utilization of solar energy, preventing waste of useful rainwater and maximization of power from wind turbines.”

Israel Daily Picture: Eureka! Pictures Beneath the Temple Mount Now Online

The Israel Antiquities Authority Pictures Taken after the 1927 Earthquake

Also:
A Morsi moment in the media, by Simon Plosker (h/t Josh)

French ambassador to Israel: Sometimes, the use of force is necessary
...but what about when Israel does it? (h/t Yoel)

The "moderate" PA also routinely calls Jews "apes and pigs"

One of the more interesting observations about the current kerfuffle over Morsi being caught calling Jews "apes and pigs" is that this rhetoric is mainstream not only in the Muslim Brotherhood - but by the so-called "moderate" Palestinian Authority.

You know, the people that the UN just overwhelmingly decided were deserving of a state.

Thanks to Palestinian Media Watch, we have tons of documentation of PA officials and PA media using that exact same terminology:

Source: Palestinian TV (Fatah), Jan. 9, 2012Moderator at Fatah ceremony:
"Our war with the descendants of the apes and pigs (i.e., Jews) is a war of religion and faith. Long Live Fatah! [I invite you,] our honorable Sheikh."

PA daily: "Jews, Jews! Your holiday [Passover] is the Holiday of Apes"
Source: Al-Hayat Al-Jadida, Apr. 19, 2011

"The spring carnival has retained its [Palestinian] flavor in towns such as Bethlehem, Beit Sahour and Ramallah... with the demonstrations of the Scouts, songs, dances, and popular Palestinian hymns about Christian-Islamic unity and internal Christian unity. These hymns carry meaningful messages, in response to the Israeli prohibition [to enter Jerusalem], as seen in the calls of the youth who lead the procession of light, waving swords and not caring if anyone accuses them of Antisemitism: ... 'Our Lord, Jesus Christ, Christ redeemed us, with his blood he bought us, and today we are joyous while the Jews are sad,' and, 'Jews, Jews! Your holiday is the Holiday of the Apes, while our holiday is the Holiday of the Christ.'"

PA cleric: The "cursed apes and pigs" [Jews] undoubtedly poisoned Arafat
Source: Palestinian TV (Fatah), Nov. 5, 2004
Ibrahim Mudayris, PA religious official, Ministry of Religious Affairs:
“We are absolutely sure that the Zionist government is responsible for the attempt to kill the president [Arafat]. We have no doubt that it somehow poisoned him to kill him slowly. These are the cursed apes and pigs [Jews]. It is our right to pray to Allah to cure him, and to plant poison the hearts of those pigs. Have you seen them on TV embracing each other, singing and dancing, those apes, those pigs, on the news about the president’s death.”

PA TV: Allah describes Jews as "apes and pigs"
Source: Palestinian TV (Fatah), Sept. 12, 2004
PA cleric, Dr. Muhammad Ibrahim Maadi:
“All the weapons must be aimed at the Jews, Allah’s enemies, the cursed nation in the Quran, whom Allah describes as apes and pigs, worshippers of the calf and idol worshippers…Nothing will deter them except the color of blood in their filthy nation... We are waging this cruel war with the brothers of the apes and pigs, the Jews and the sons of Zion. The Jews will fight you and you will subjugate them. Until the Jew will stand behind the tree and the rock. And the tree and the rock will say: oh Muslim, oh servant of Allah, there is a Jew behind me, come and kill him.”

Jews are pigs and apes
Source: Palestinian TV (Fatah), Sept. 29, 2003
Girl on phone to TV show:
Girl: "My name is Alaa, I am from Rafah, ten years old."
Host: "Yes, please, Alaa."
Girl: "Let the pigs and the apes know, and their leaders Sharon and Bush, that we shall stay on this land, our birth place and origin. And we shall be buried there, Shahids (Martyrs) for Palestine.”

PA religious figure: Allah turned Jews into apes and pigs
Source: Palestinian TV (Fatah), Nov. 1, 2002
Dr. Mahmoud Mustafa Najem, PA religious figure:
"Praise unto Allah, Who cursed our enemies; curse upon curse up to Judgment Day. And He has cursed them as well through the words of His prophets and emissaries… The Jews, however, as is their nature, and as Allah described them in His Book, [characterizing them] by conceit, pride, arrogance, rampage, disloyalty and treachery... They have a single common trait: enmity of Islam and Moslems... Note [their] deceit and cunning. Thus, it is not an exception to their nature, for which Allah transformed them to apes and pigs. [Quran] "We said to them: Be apes, despised and loathed.""

These are only some from the PA. Hamas has plenty more!

For those who try to argue that these are not representative of Palestinian Arabs as a whole, I have only one request: Find me a news story showing Arabs protesting against any single one of these expressions of Jew-hatred. Find me a columnist in a PA newspaper who criticize these broadcasts. Find me an organization in the territories that fights anti-semitism. Prove that these are the exception, and not the rule.

You can't.

(h/t EBoZ)

Sloppy "Khazar" genetic research gets publicity from AFP

From AFP, in a story presumptuously titled "Gene study settles debate over origin of European Jews":

Jews of European origin are a mix of ancestries, with many hailing from tribes in the Caucasus who converted to Judaism and created an empire that lasted half a millennium, according to a gene study.

The investigation, its author says, should settle a debate that has been roiling for more than two centuries.

Jews of European descent, often called Ashkenazis, account for some 90 percent of the more than 13 million Jews in the world today.

That last paragraph comes straight from the paper, and shows already how sloppy the paper is. Of course, far fewer than 90% of Jews today are Ashkenaz; the paper misquoted that statistic from an article about American Jews. Seth Frantzman in JPost showed this and other sloppiness about this study a few weeks ago.

AFP, of course, cannot be trusted to actually do any fact checking.

Seeking new light in the argument, a study published in the British journal Genome Biology and Evolution, compares the genomes of 1,287 unrelated individuals who hail from eight Jewish and 74 non-Jewish populations.

Geneticist Eran Elhaik of the Johns Hopkins School of Public Health in Baltimore, Maryland, trawled through this small mountain of data in search of single changes in the DNA code that are linked to a group's geographical origins.

Frantzman shows that Elhaik makes assumptions about history that are simply not true:

However, the real flaws in this new research are historical. The author claims a massive knowledge of history that has major implications for his findings.

“There are no records of Caucasus populations mass-migrating to Eastern and Central Europe prior to the fall of Khazaria.”

The footnote for this is another genetic research study, but a claim like this requires historical knowledge of the Caucuses. In fact, the Caucuses were a place of great human movement from the 15th to 19th centuries. Cossacks, Circassians, Chechans, Tatars and numerous other groups roamed the region in the period, some of whom, like the Khazars, vanished to history.

The author claims that his evidence shows that “Judaized Greco-Roman male-driven migration directly to Khazaria is consistent with historical demographic migrations and could have created the observed pattern.” Following in the footsteps of Tel Aviv University academic Shlomo Sand’s work, The Invention of the Jewish People, Elhaik claims “no Jewish historiography was produced from the time of Josephus Flavius (1st century CE) to the 19th century.”

But the source, Sand, is not an expert on Jewish history in the period – his book, like Koester’s, was more a polemic.

Elhaik goes further, noting that “the religious conversion of the Khazars encompassed all the Empire’s citizens and subordinate tribes and lasted for the next 400 years…the Judeo- Khazars fled to Eastern Europe and later migrated to Central Europe and admixing with the neighboring populations.”

There is actually no evidence of this; the general view has been that only some of the Khazar elite converted to Judaism.

Yet Elhaik even claims to know the details of the Judeo-Khazar life. “After the decline of their Empire, the Judeo-Khazars refugees sought shelter in the emerging Polish Kingdom and other Eastern European communities, where their expertise in economics, finances, and politics were valued.”

The source for much of this is Koestler, passed off as fact with no mention that Koestler simply inferred most of it from his imagination and theories.

In other words, Elhaik uses as source material Shlomo Sand and Arthur Koestler, who are more akin to fiction writers than serious researchers!

There is evidence that Elhaik was predisposed to find Khazar connections when evidence does not support it. He started a crowdsourcing project to raise money for his paper, and called it "The Khazar DNA project."

It sounds like he reached his conclusion before he did his research.

But what do experts on European genetics think? The author of the European Genetics and Anthropology Blog is more than a little skeptical of Elhaik's claims:

I think the author fumbled the interpretation of the results.

His mistake was treating the Armenian reference sample as a Caucasus group, and also a proxy for the gene pool of the Khazar Empire. Thus, when the Jewish samples showed strong affinity to the Armenians, the author mistook this as a signal of Khazar ancestry in Jews, because the Khazar Empire included parts of the Caucasus.

But what do modern Armenians of the South Caucasus have to do with ancient Khazars of the Pontic Caspian Steppe? Not much, I'd say. Armenians aren't even a useful Caucasian reference set, in my opinion. They're better treated as an Eastern Anatolian group, due to their high affinity to Mediterranean and Middle Eastern populations.

Moreover, they show low North/East European input, and very little East Eurasian influence, which is actually the sort of stuff we'd want in a proxy for the inhabitants of the Khazar Empire in what is now Southern Russia.

All those looking for Khazar influence in Jews should be aware that the Eurasian steppes are part of the Northern world, and this has been the case for thousands of years. We know this from ancient DNA, from samples all the way from what is now Ukraine to South Siberia. This Northern world is separated from the Southern world by some mighty barriers to gene flow, like the Black Sea, Caucasus Mountains and the deserts of Central Asia (see here).

Based on my own analyses of Jewish genomes, I'd say that Ashkenazim Jews are genetically an Eastern Mediterranean group, but with various other admixtures, like Western European, Eastern European, Eastern Anatolian, and even African and East Asian. Does that mean ancestry from the Khazar Empire? Perhaps in part, but it's hard to say for sure.

So, what could be a sure signal of Khazar influence in modern Jews? The best bet is probably the R1a-Z94 carried by many Ashkenazim Levites. This marker is very common in modern Indo-Iranian and Turkic groups, so it's not difficult to imagine its presence in ancient Khazaria. The only problem is that it's also seen in Semitic groups, like Arabs. That's why it's not possible to say at the moment if the Z94 in Jews is of Semitic, Khazar or some other origin, like, for example, Persian. Someone should look into that.

I've previously outlined my own reasons for saying that the Khazar theory is nonsense:

Some Jews are descendants of Aaron (Kohanim) and Levi (Leviim.) Kohanim and Leviim have different roles in the religion and that status gets handed down from fathers to sons. If all Jews are converts from Khazaria, how did many of them turn into Kohanim and Leviim?

Moreover, there is a continual written record of Jewish legal issues from the Mishna through the rest of the Talmud through the Geonic period, Rishonim and later. If there was an influx of a huge number of converted Jews coming out of Khazaria, it would have engendered many new questions and legal rulings regarding their status as Jews. Where are they?

Not only that, but to get to the level of expert legal knowledge required by leading rabbis is a long educational process. How could a large group of new converts gain such expertise so thoroughly that they could be accepted by the existing Jewish communities without any record of them attending any existing institutions of Jewish study? Jewish law is nothing if not complex.

Jew-hatred is the Muslim Brotherhood's official position

The official Muslim Brotherhood of Egypt website noted the visit yesterday by John McCain and other senators to President Morsi, but said nothing about how Morsi claimed that his 2010 anti-semitic statements captured on video were "out of context."

This is not surprising because it is the Muslim Brotherhood itself that is inherently anti-semitic, and now it is embarrassed about it - but unable to cover it up.

For example, this article on Muslim Brotherhod website discusses how Jews have caused problems in all the lands they've lived in, in a rant worthy of the neo-Nazi Stormfront site.

The site also has a six part series on "Jewish ethics" that states at the outset:

Anyone with eyes knows that Jewish character - wherever and whenever it is found - is indistinguishable from delinquency, and has never rid itself of corruption....[Jews] never succeeded to have a normal coexistence and good relationships with humanity. It is not an exaggeration to say that they do not cease to be a source of evil and harm to all human societies, in other words: [Judaism] inherently can not ever be compatible with a community of human societies.

Morsi's statements were not anomalous - they are mainstream within his belief system. And this system now rules the most populous and influential Arab country in the world.

While it is commendable that the media and the US has brought Morsi's statements to light, they are not going to the root of the problem, which is the inherent hate that is part of the philosophy of the Muslim Brotherhood, the rulers of Egypt.

That cannot be swept under the rug as easily as Morsi's videos are.

Which might be why we won't be seeing any condemnations about it.