Elder Of Ziyon - Israel News

Tuesday, April 07, 2009

Latest "outrage" - the "Umayyad" stone

As I mentioned in my morning update, some Palestinian Arabs are up in arms over a supposed Israeli desecration of yet another important Muslim shrine.

From Ma'an (Arabic):

Mohamed Awad, Secretary General of the Council of Ministers, denounced the capture of the Israeli occupation of one of the stones of the Umayyad palaces in the city of Jerusalem.

Awad said in a statement to Ma'an, "This action is a form of erasing Islamic history to change the parameters of the Holy City and the eradication of the Islamic and Arab identity and that the occupation authorities aimed at bringing about demographic change in the holy city and the deportation of Palestinians and the confiscation of their property ".

Also from Ma'an:

Tayseer Rajab al-Tamimi, Chief Justice of Palestine, accused Israel of the [destruction of] Islamic sanctities and the massacre of Christian civilization, blurring the historical landmarks, on the second day of the Forum on the Alliance of Civilizations of the United Nations in Istanbul.

He stressed that there is an unprecedented acceleration of the Government of the occupation and the Jewish religious extremist groups to Judaize the city of Jerusalem, the latest of which was the so-called "Israel Antiquities Authority," the theft of a precious archaeological sites in the Islamic Umayyad palaces in the south-east corner of the Masjid al-Aqsa mosque and placed in front of the Israeli Knesset, saying it has done as one of the greatest crimes of the times and in defiance of all the resolutions of UNESCO, the United Nations and a clear violation of the charters and resolutions, international conventions, "which states that Jerusalem is an occupied city laws do not apply for the Israeli and classified by UNESCO and is Amairha premises."

Another article in PalToday

calls it a "Rosetta Stone" and also accuses Israel of placing it in front of the Knesset.

So what are they talking about?

I finally found a picture of this "Umayyad palace" stone, at Al-Quds.

And the Al-Quds article sheds light on what should be obvious about this stone for anyone who ever visited the tunnels under the Western Wall: that this stone is from the Second Temple, not an Umayyad palace that was built over a millennium later.

The stone was taken to the Israeli Knesset and the public put in front of the building at the site to see both within the Israeli Knesset has allocated a small platform and the subject of concrete, according to Israeli claims of the institution, this stone structure is one of the stones of the alleged second temple.

Compare how this stone looks with the stones on the lowest level over the Temple tunnels, way beneath any Umayyad structure:

These borders and dimensions show that stone to be Herodian, not Umayyad. I know that Israel has started a project to protect the stones fo the Kotel from damage andI am not sure if this particular stone was moved as part of that project - that doesn't seem likely - but to say that this stone is Islamic is, simply, to lie.

Morning items of interest

The Wall Street Journal looks at anti-semitism that is fueled by the economic crisis.

Israel performed a successful test of it's Arrow-2 anti-ballistic missile system. Israel is worried that the US might cut funding for the Arrow-3 system as a result of Pentagon budget cuts. A UPI analysis says

Israel may lose U.S. funding for its ambitious Arrow-3 anti-ballistic missile interceptor, but the United States may instead sell Israel its already operational Standard Missile-3, which has a far superior performance to what the Israelis wanted from their Arrow-3 anyway.

Palestinian Arabs are upset that Israel supposedly removed a large historic stone from the southeast of the Temple Mount and moved it to the Knesset. This story sounds like a completely unfounded rumor or a wild exaggeration, as the Israel Antiquities Authority keeps close tabs on any Israeli construction that could damage any archaeological sites. (They are not quite as good about Arab construction.)

Latest Hamas blood libel

From Palestinian Media Watch via FrontPage:

In this skit, Hamas portrays a "Jewish" father talking to his son:

Father: "We Jews hate the Muslims, we want to kill the Muslims, we Jews want to drink the blood of Muslims and Arabs.
[Turns to the audience:] Are you Muslims and Arabs?
[The audience responds in the affirmative.]
I hate you, to please God."
...
Father: "Shimon, look, my son, I want to teach you a few things. You have to hate the Muslims."
Son: "[I don't] like them, I hate them."
Father: "You have to drink the blood of the Muslims."
...
Father: "I spoke with God, so that you will hate the Muslims, so that you will please God."
Son: "Don't worry, father."
Father: "Very well, my son. I repeat: You have to hate the Muslims."
Son: "But I [do] hate them."
Father: You have to drink the blood of the Muslims."
...
Father: "I tell you, you must stand next to me and pray, my son."
Son: "Okay, one moment and I'm coming."
Father: "Where are you going, my son?"
Son: "I am going to cleanse my body." [as Muslims do before prayer]
Father: "You're going to do WHAT?"
Son: "To cleanse my body. You said you want us to pray."
Father: "Muslims [do that], not us."
...
Father: "We have to wash our hands with the blood of Muslims."

Honor killing for "leaving the house too often"

From Gulf News:

Jordan's Criminal Court has charged a 19-year-old man with stabbing to death his sister in what is believed to be an honour killing.

Al Dridi said the man confessed to repeatedly stabbing his 22-year-old sister to cleanse the family honour because she left the house too often.

The victim is the eighth person to be killed in honour crimes this year [in Jordan.]

Is there any excuse that people don't use for honor killings?

I just saw this ad on a Google sidebar.

Clicking on it brings one to a neo-Nazi paraphernalia site, named NSM88 Records, where you can see such items as this T-shirt:

Apparently Google is happily accepting advertisements from neo-Nazis.

Google's AdWords policy does not seem to have any real prohibition against these sorts of ads. The closest I could find was this section on "inappropriate phrases."

The best page I could find to complain to Google was this one.

Arabs who try to get on the Jews' good side

The New York Times has an interesting article on the tiny Jewish community of Bahrain:

In the tense landscape of the Middle East, there is little room left for Jewish Arabs, a tiny minority in this country as well as in places like Egypt, Morocco and Tunisia. But in Bahrain, the king, Hamad bin Isa al-Khalifa, has taken unprecedented steps for an Arab leader to show his support for his dwindling Jewish population. Last year, he appointed a Jewish woman, Houda Ezra Ebrahim Nonoo, as ambassador to the United States, the first Jewish ambassador posted abroad by any Arab country.

Then he made a personal visit to London to appeal to expatriate Jews to return to Bahrain. He has also appointed Jewish business leaders to the Shura Council, which acts as an upper house of Parliament. Those measures went against the tide in a region where anti-Semitism is often preached from government-controlled mosques and hating all Jews has become interchangeable with hating the state of Israel.

Being Jewish in the conservative Persian Gulf region still presents challenges, even in Bahrain. Though it has preserved its last synagogue, the building has not had a religious use for decades and all Jewish symbols have been removed. Nevertheless, it is defaced with graffiti that says, in Arabic, “Death to Israel.”

While Bahrain's efforts to make its 36 Jews comfortable is admirable, there may be an agenda:

Some people here take a cynical view of their king’s outreach. Bahrain is a close American ally of great strategic value to Washington. It is near Iran and allows the United States Navy to base its Fifth Fleet here. Many people said the king’s overtures were a safe and convenient bid to cement ties with Washington.

“We always believe here that control of America is governed by the Zionist lobby,” said Salman Kamal al-Deen, a businessman and the head of the Bahrain Human Rights Society. “The media and the money are all in the hands of the Jews. We believe if we have a Jewish ambassador and Jews in the Shura Council, this is a positive indicator for the country.”

There is also some resentment at the king’s support for the small Jewish community. Bahrain is hot with sectarian tensions: the king, a Sunni Muslim, is accused of discriminating against Shiite Muslims, who make up a majority of the native population. Shiites are barred from almost all positions in the military and security services, and they say they are not given the same employment and education opportunities as their Sunni neighbors.

Shiites complain that the 36 Jews are treated better than they are, and that the king’s Jewish outreach is intended to make Bahrain appear to be a tolerant society, papering over the systemic discrimination they say they experience.

It is easy to be tolerant when the tolerated minority offers zero threat and happily accepts its second-class status. When other minorities are not treated as well, one must question why that is. The answer very may well be the flip-side of anti-semitism: the belief that since Jews control the world, it makes sense to butter them up.

Similarly, here is another news story from over the weekend:

Al-Jazeera is lobbying Canadian Jews in its bid for regulatory approval to hit the airwaves.

Tony Burman, a former executive at the Canadian Broadcasting Corp. who is now managing director of the Al-Jazeera network, met this week with representatives of the Canadian Jewish Congress to reassure Canadian Jews that the operation's English service, which has been running for two years, is independent from the controversial Arabic service.

In both these cases, the reason for paying attention to Jews is not because Jews are respected. It is because Jews are perceived to have power and must be sucked up to. While this is arguably better than the normal explicit hate that comes from the Arab world, the thinking behind it is very similar.

Ma'an again calls a terrorist "shahid"

From the Ma'an English site:

A group calling itself the “Ahrar An-Naqab” (Free People of the Negev) on Monday claimed responsibility for Saturday’s shooting at Israeli soldiers at the Shoket Junction near the southern Israeli city of Beer Sheva.

The statement also warned Israeli authorities who are continuing to detain family members of the “martyr,” Basma Nibari, threatening to carry out more “qualitative and unprecedented” attacks. The group asserted that the operation came in retaliation for Israeli atrocities in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, as well as demolition of homes in Jerusalem.

The statement denied claims that Nibari had personal or family troubles, affirming she was adamant about carrying out an attack against the occupation and wanted be “an example for Palestinians living inside Israel.”

Ma'an here, refers to the terrorist as a "martyr" in scare quotes, indicating that it does not agree that she is a heroine.

Part of the same article, in Arabic, autotranslated:

The statement warned Israel of the continued detention of [the family of the] martyred, and promising more of the operations launched by the quality and unprecedented, adding that the operation came in response to the massacres and crimes of the occupation in Gaza and the West Bank and the policy of house demolitions in Jerusalem and the right message to Government that it will face a "black days. "

The "Free Negev Brigade" denied that Şahide Alnbari had any family or personal problems, "but was determined to implement the process to become a model in the '48 Arab [territories] and deter the occupation and martyrdom for the sake of Allah."

It took out the scare quotes for "martyr" and explicitly called the terrorist girl a "shahid" in the latter paragraph.

Which means that the most "moderate" Palestinian Arab news source explicitly endorses terror attacks inside Israel and considers those who perform them to be heroes.

It also means that the average Palestinian Arab would prefer to see Arabs in Israel act like a fifth column, something that would inevitably make their lives harder.

AP shows anti-Zionist bias in Tel Aviv article

AP has an article about Tel Aviv's 100th anniversary. While it should have been a puff piece, they still manage to throw in their own biases.

The headline in the Philadelphia Inquirer calls it the "First Jewish City." The caption of photos call it "the world's first purpose-built Jewish city."

Somehow, I seem to recall a whole bunch of Jewish cities built over two thousand years ago. The AP has implicitly accepted the Arab claims that Israel has nothing to do with Jewish history, and was built on Arab land.

Even worse is what they quoted here:

In last year's mayoral election, a third of the vote went to Dov Khenin, a Jewish member of a mixed Arab-Israeli party. He finished second.
Still, having been founded as an entirely Jewish city on empty land purchased from its Arab owners, "in that regard," said Khenin, "it is not a Zionist city, because in no way was it based on the oppression of the Arabs."

AP quotes a Jew who defines Zionism as the oppression of Arabs - which is exactly the Arab definition, and exactly not the Zionist definition!

Of course, AP doesn't bother to find anyone who disputes this assertion - one that justifies terror attacks, world hatred and Arab intransigence towards Israel. AP obviously believes it as self-evident, expecially since it found a Jew to assert it.

So the mainstream media continues its mission to demonize Israel even in a minor feature about what should be a celebration of Israel.

Nah, they're not anti-semitic

Al Quds newspaper has an Arabic article on the Birkat HaChamah, the blessing of the sun that will be made by Jews this coming Wednesday for the first time in 28 years.

The first commenter shows his "anti-Zionism":

The sun will burn out the Jews. Allah forever.

Bahrain embarrassed over "Top Ten Sin City" award

From Al-Arabiya:

Making the list of the Top Ten "Sin Cities" around the world may not be good news for Manama, Bahrain's capital, as police launched a crackdown on prostitutes in the city last week following its listing by a western men's magazine as the party hub of the Middle East for its vibrant sex and alcohol industry.

Police in Bahrain rounded up 300 prostitutes and pimps in Manama last week as Bahraini religious authorities called for a crackdown campaign on debauchery after the capital made the cut as the eighth most sinful--and the only Arab--city in the world according to Askmen.com, which dubbed Manama "the party oasis of the Middle East."

Connected to Saudi Arabia by a causeway, Manama is the place to be for Saudis seeking to escape what is seen as the rigid laws of their country. The Bahraini capital offers a gamut of debaucheries from drinking and clubbing to prostitution, an illegal yet widely available industry.

Despite being a predominantly Muslim city with only one third of foreign residents, Manama enjoys a liberal culture well within the reach of rich Arabs who fill flights to the city every weekend.

The Kipp Report adds:

Indeed, Bahrain’s problem with prostitution is the stuff of legends.

”Prostitution is rampant in the hotels and nightclubs, and the streets are filled with “massage parlors.” Bahrain is a destination for sex tourism,” says an article on The New York Times published earlier this week.

Even as far back as 1937, the Bahraini authorities were aware of their burgeoning problem with prostitution. According to a local blogger, Babbling Bahraini, the country issued a government notice on February 8, 1937, which reportedly stated the following:

All immodest prostitutes are ordered to live in prostitute places and they
are not allowed to stay in honorable places in Manama and Muharraq.
The places assigned to the immodest prostitutes is (fareeg madree waish) x
district in Manama and x (madree waish) district in Muharraq.
Owners of the honorable places are responsible in a court [of law]
if they allow immodest prostitutes or gamblers.
If within one month from this date, any immodest prostitute is found
staying in an honorable place and hasn’t moved to the prostitute
district will be prosecuted in court.
Any foreign prostitute caught violating these orders will be banished
from Bahrain.

PalArabs define 70 year old buildings as "archaeological"

From the Palestine Telegraph:

Institution: IOF destroyed archaeological buildings during the aggression on Gaza

Sounds like those evil Zionists have a total disregard for ancient history! Let's see the details:

Jerusalem institution informed that the Israeli offensive army devastated four historic buildings belonging to the Islamic, ottoman, British and Egyptian reign periods during the recent aggression on Gaza.The institution notified, in a press release issued in Wednesday the 1st of April 2009 that the governor’s mansion was destroyed. It is worth mentioning that the mansion is an architectural tableau and a masterpiece that has been built during the reign of Egypt in the fifties and stood to be a witness along the historical periods till the president Yasser Arafat adopted it as a headquarter.

It has also pointed out that the Israeli shelled a building belonging to the municipal police in the old city of Gaza. The building dates back to the thirties. During that time it belonged to Gaza municipality while Fahmi al-Husseini Beck was undertaking the functions of the municipality. Half of the building which had been built with red bricks was destroyed completely while the other part was partially damaged which has also affected the near old buildings.

The institution noted that the F16 aircrafts devastated the military government house which was built during the British reign. During the thirties, it was used as a headquarter, military center, central prison for the British army. Then the Israeli occupation used it for the same purposes. After the Palestinian authority came, the building has been expanded besides building new units to be a center for the national security forces till it was destroyed completely.

Almost as an afterthought comes this addition:

Occupation, in earlier time, has destroyed Al-Naser historical mosque which was built in 736 A.D. in Beit Hanoun.

This sounds a little fishy, even though Al Arabiya said the mosque was destroyed in the early days of the operation.

A little research finds out what really happened to that mosque, which was built 500 years later than how it is described today:

The Umm al-Nasr Mosque was built 1239 by the Ayyubids to commemorate their soldiers who had died in the battle on the mosque site between them and the Crusaders. The Ayyubids were victorious, hence the name Umm al-Nasr ("Mother of Victories").[1][2] The inscription on the wall above the mosque entrance attributes the construction to Ayyubid sultan al-Adil II.

On November 3, 2006, Israeli forces and Palestinian militants holed up inside the mosque exchanged gunfire. The mosque was virtually destroyed by Israeli shells, the only structure untouched being the southern portico a shallow dome in the mosque center.

So that mosque, rather than being destroyed during the Gaza op, was actually used by terrorists as a fortress to fight Israeli troops a year and a half ago, and the IDF responded.

The claim that Israel destroyed "archaeological" buildings during the Gaza op is shown to be utterly without foundation.

Add one more to the gigantic and ever-growing list of lies that come out of Palestinian Arab mouths every day.

Today's PalArab media roundup (4-5-09)

Ma'an reports that IDF soldiers barged into Tulkarem, fired tear gas and bullets, scared residents - and then bought a water pipe from a shop there. It cost 230 shekels.

Jordan set up an investigation to look at smuggling of weapons into the West Bank.

A middle-aged Palestinian Arab committed suicide in front of his children in Gaza.

The PRC claimed to have shot four mortars at Israeli soldiers in Gaza.

Egypt destroyed 10 smuggling tunnels, said to be used for fuel.

Sock puppet Sam Hamod returns again

"Dr." Sam Hamod, liar extraordinaire, returns to the comments, pretending to be the fictional "Rabbi Shmuel Handelman:"

Dear deluded shmucky "Elder" (what nonsense for you to call yourself an elder):

I am a rabbi, but you are a fraud.
I should sue you for libel and slander, but you are not worth the bother. I wonder if you are a Jew or Zionist--you know, if you are truly a Jew, that they are not the same thing, as I have been trying to point out in my articles.

Enough said.

Shalom,
Rabbi Handelman
rabbi shmuel handelman | 04.03.09 - 5:57 pm |

So I looked a little further, and found absolute proof that Hamod is "Handelman". In a message written in 2006 to a Yahoo message board, there is a comment by this "rabbi" - but Hamod forgot to log out from his own Yahoo account when posting it. (The original page is gone, this comes from the Google cache):

Neither Balfour of England, nor the UN had the right to give Palestinian land to Israel; thus, the whole concept of true justice was thrown out the window. At this time, Israel refuses to clarify where it's borders end; one radical in Israel says it ends in Iraq. Who knows? Frankly, I think it extends into Washington, DC and takes over most of America and its assets, and pulls America into one disaster after another. My question is, how long will we American people allow this madness to go on, and continue supporting the terrorist state of Israel? Shalom, Rabbi Shmuel Handelman, Temple Shalom

Posted by samhamod@sbcglobal.net on Thu, Feb 16, 2006 2:26 AM ET

197

"Temple Shalom?" Is that the most imaginative name you could have come up with? Geez, Sam, you are even more pathetic than I thought!

Sam, as you obsessively Google your own name and see this posting, you know as well as I do that I have proven you a fraud and a charlatan, who pathetically tries to make up people to "defend" your positions because no real people exist who would. Not only have you made up "Handelman" and "Tovah Blum/Bloom", the woman who doesn't know how to spell her own name, but also "David Alexander, Esq." I doubt that you are a Ph.D., too.

So, Sam/"Shmuel," please go ahead with your threatened lawsuit against me. I dare you.

Three Pittsburgh police officers were killed and two others were injured after a heavily armed man began firing at them as they responded to a domestic call this morning at a home in Stanton Heights.
The 22-year-old suspected shooter, Richard "Pop" Poplawski, who told friends he was wearing a bulletproof vest, surrendered to police about 11 a.m., four hours after the standoff began at 1016 Fairfield St.
...
Mr.Poplawski called Edward Perkovic, a longtime friend and former classmate at North Catholic High School, on a cell phone around 8:30 a.m. Mr. Perkovic said Mr. Poplawski told him he'd been shot in the chest and leg, but that the bulletproof vest he'd been wearing had shielded him.
Mr. Perkovic and other former classmates said they were surprised by this morning's events. Mr. Perkovic said Mr. Poplawski was opposed to "Zionist propaganda" and was fearful that his right to own weapons would be taken away but he wasn't a member of an organized group or militia.

Perkovic, his best friend, is also an anti-semite, as his MySpace page: (h/t Crooks and Liars)

DOCUMENTS I RECCOMEND YOU READ BY GOOGLE: "Civil War II" by Tom Chittum "The Protocols of the Elders of Zion" "The Turner Diaries" by Dr. William Pierce "Jewish Supremacy" by Dr. David Duke

Ironically, at least one anti-semitic website immediately assumed that Poplawski was Jewish.

Hezbollah brags that British media is on their side

From Naharnet, Lebanon:

'Loyalty to the Resistance' parliamentary bloc MP Hussein Hajj Hassan said following his return from a visit to London: "British public opinion has actually changed to benefit our causes, even the [British] press is clearly reflecting this, one can easily find this to be tangible."
Hassan called for removal of the routine patterned image promoted "by the Zionist and [some] Arab media in Lebanon and Palestine."

The parliamentarian was invited to the United Kingdom by members of the British Commons to lecture and to meet with a number of British officials.

Hajj-Hassan is a member of the Lebanese parliament loyal to Hezbollah.

Does this mean that the British media is in the pocket of the worldwide Islamist lobby?

Interesting reading

Iran back on the front burner with Bibi in charge.

Right and wrong even amongst the shadows

Oliphant embraced by - Hezbollah

PA: Death penalty for those who sell land to Jews

Al Jazeera sets sights on Canada

Where did religious Zionism go?

Orthodox Ashkenazic rebels plan to eat kitniyot this Passover

Quran teacher sexually abused male students

And then he used their sperm to make a ritual bath.

From Niger This Day:

“We only sent our children all the way from Gusau to aqcuire quranic education, but unknown to us, the man we entrusted them into his hands to be their teacher and guardian turned out to abuse them sexually.

“If only I had known that he was such a man, I would have kept my children with me and made them attend Islamiya from home under my care rather than put them under the care of a man that has almost ruined their lives.

“From what has just happened to me, I will not send any of my children away from my sight again and I enjoin other parents who can not stop sending their children away from their reach to aquire knowlege, they should always ask them personal questions when they come for Sallah holiday.” These were the words of Mallam Abubakar the father of two sons, Lawali Idris and Lawali Hassan whose children and 24 others were in Islamic school (the almajiri system) and were allegedly abused sexually by their teacher.

The accused teacher, Usman Sani, a 52 year-old man who hails from Gusau in Zamfara State was arrested by the Police at Erena in Shiroro Local Government of Niger State on allegations from one of the almajiris Ibrahim Musa, a 14 year-old in his custody who accused him of sexually abusing on different occassions.
The evil deeds of the teacher was exposed a day the boy said enough is enough and refused to be abused by his teacher and the teacher beat him so badly that Ibrahim had to escape to a near by house were he narrated his ordeal to the owners of the house.
According to Ibrahim, some nights, he will notice that their mallam which means teacher as he is called by his students will stick out his (Ibrahim) penis from his trouser and begin to orally abuse him. He said in most occasion, the mallam will collect his semen in a container and leave their room.

When asked the reason he was in Police custody, Sani narrated his own side of the story giving a detailed description of how he carries out the neferous act.

“At night, when the children fall asleep, I normally go to the older ones among them, undress them and orally them and I will then collect their semen into a container. I will make the sperm to dry after which I usually mix it with the bark of a tree and use the mixture in my bath water daily. I do this for wealth, spiritual strength and for proficiency of the spiritual assistance I render to my clients who come to seek assistance for different ailments and problems they are faced with,” he emphasised.
Though Sani refused to mention those who patronise him, it was obvious from what he said that some wealthy and powerful men in the society enjoy his patronage and those within the police premises where he was paraded are of the opinion that Sani uses the sperm of the young boys who are within the ages of 12-15 years for money-making rituals for his clients or use the sperm for longevity for himself or his clients.

Arafat "poisoning" probe suffers a setback

The Arab commission to ~~determine the cause of Arafat's death~~ prove that Arafat was murdered by lying Zionist scum has suffered a setback.

As I reported on Monday, two days before the AP noticed it, Arafat's nephew is trying to put together a commission of doctors to prove that Arafat was poisoned. In Al-Quds today he even says that they are ready to take the "evidence" of poisoning to the International Criminal Court. But first, they have the pesky problem of, you know, proof.

Unfortunately, the initial meeting of Arafat's doctor cronies has been delayed.

Arafat's nephew, Nasser al Kidwa, who by sheer coincidence was also once the former "Palestinian Foreign Minister," said that the delay was simply because they couldn't get all the proper doctors together, and they will meet, although they don't know when.

For his part, Arafat's former physician Ashraf al-Kurdi doubts that the commission will uncover any new evidence. He says it was already known four years ago that Arafat died of poisoning.

Environmentalists love Birkat HaChama

From the Wall Street Journal:

According to Talmudic calculations, every 28 years the sun is in the exact position it occupied at the time of Creation. As it happens, that moment falls on Wednesday, April 8, of this year, at sunrise -- just hours before Passover begins. There is a brief blessing for the occasion, too. It is called Birchat Hachamah, Hebrew for "blessing of the sun." But the sun is a hot topic these days, not least because of global warming, and this time around the blessing, in itself, is not enough: A whole environmental message is being attached to what was once a simple ceremony.
Thus Jews who wish to mark the occasion will find a variety of options, including a Manhattan rooftop service that supplements the blessing with yoga sun salutations and environmental speeches; a beachfront "mystical" service in Seattle; and an arts, music and "healing" festival in Safed, Israel.
One can also participate in a "Birkat Hahammah Art Contest" or sign on to a "Birkat Hahammah Covenant of Commitment" pledging to "hasten the day of environmental healing, social justice and sustainable living for all." The art contest and covenant (which has 73 signatories so far) are sponsored by 15 institutions, including the Coalition on the Environment and Jewish Life, the Jewish National Fund, the Reform and Conservative movements' rabbinical associations -- and Arava Power, a kibbutz-founded company that says it is "bringing Solar Power in massive quantities to both Israel and Jordan."

The Hebrew blessing itself -- the English translation is "Blessed are You, King of the Universe, who makes the works of creation" -- is quite brief, its text the same as the blessing one is commanded to say upon seeing a natural wonder like lightning or the Grand Canyon. At its last scheduled recitation, back in 1981, Birchat Hachamah was virtually unheard of outside the Orthodox community.
But that was before global warming became a household word, before the advent of a Jewish movement that has spawned "environmental bike rides," Jewish environmental curricula, Jewish organic farms, Jewish community-supported agriculture groups and even free-range, organic kosher poultry.
All of this is "a little bemusing" to Rabbi J. David Bleich, a Yeshiva University Talmud professor whose scholarly tome "Bircas HaChammah" was published in 1981 and re-released this year by the Orthodox Jewish publishing company ArtScroll Mesorah. According to Rabbi Bleich, environmental concerns are "issues in and of themselves and are totally unrelated to the blessing of the sun." He sees the blessing as an occasion to acknowledge the wonder of God's creations, not a political statement. "I suppose you can connect anything," he says. "You can draw dots and lines; you don't have to be logical."

Dubai asks Google to censor the Internet

Al Arabiya (Arabic) reports:

Officials of the Dubai Police asked the popular search engine "Google" to find a mechanism "to reduce the spread of pornographic images and films that would create problems and decadence in the society, especially among young people and adolescents."

The police said in Thursday, "During a meeting in Dubai, security officials demanded that the Google Director of Development in the Middle East and Europe, Giselle Hescuk, limit the spread of pornographic passages, which make fun of religions, support atheism and calls to promote new religions, as well as asked her to prevent the part [of Google] which violate privacy, and calls for terrorism and violence, which are not suitable for young people, and promote calls for chaos and insecurity, and the passages which urge people to commit suicide and self-destruction."

An official complained about "people who exploit the Internet sites and redirect to locations incompatible with our customs and traditions, and the modesty of the people are hurt and dishonored."

He stressed that "The Dubai Police are not against freedom, but they are duty-bound to preserve the society and its customs and traditions," adding that "the security services and police will intensify its coordination with the Co-operators of the Internet in the UAE, and with it keep abreast of technical developments, in order to protect the youth" .

Another official said the campaign will ask the Internet service providers in the UAE for a ban on the display of pornographic images, and cartoons of religions, and anything out of the customs and traditions of society, did not rule out that the campaign includes an other sites, including the "Facebook" social site.

Palestinian Arab glee at axe murder of 13 year old

As expected, average Palestinian Arabs who read the mainstream, Fatah-leaning Firas Press are positively joyous that a 13-year old Shlomo Nativ was brutally murdered by one of their brethren.

Here are some comments in the Arabic Firas site:

All pay tribute to the resistance

God supports the right and power of God and the sons of Islam, the great

Cherishing God - Recognizes the hands of God, who was killed that pig

Every revolution is the answer Every God is the answer and the best solution is the clandestine resistance cells ...

The Al Aqsa Brigades claimed responsibility for the operation Hahahahahahahahahahaha

Salute to the Champions-Aqsa Brigades

The best news I have read today, support the Mujahideen

The Palestinian people confirm that the operation came as a natural and smooth response from the one coming at the hands of our fighters and the bomber arrived QUSAI 9 through which the safety of all the best and thank God it was bull until victory

Notice that the Fatah supporters who read Firas are very happy that "their" terrorists claimed responsibility. Sort of like rooting for a sports team, just they are rooting that their team murders more children than their competitors.

Needless to say, not a single person wrote a message condemning the murder.

Lieberman's speech

As usual, the press likes to write that the "ultranationalist" Avigdor Lieberman made a hardline speech rejecting peace and a two-state solution. And as usual, it is not easy to find the actual text of the speech so people can make up their own minds.

I am not a big fan of Lieberman. I do not think he is qualified nor has the temperament to be an effective foreign minister, and in many ways I think some of his ideas on a two-state solution are dangerous. But this speech is nothing at all like it is being represented, and I see little in this speech that I disagree with.

So since the media won't bother to put it in context, here it is:

Good afternoon, honorable outgoing Foreign Minister, honorable outgoing Deputy Foreign Minister, incoming Deputy Foreign Minister, Director-General Ministry employees, honored guests,

When my fellow students and I studied international relations, and learned what an international system is, we learned that there is a State and there are international organizations and all kinds of global economic corporations. Things have changed since then and, unfortunately, in the modern system, there are countries that are semi-states. It is hard to call a country like Somalia a state in the full sense of the word and the same holds true for the various autonomies in Eastern Europe, in the Balkans and here as well. It is even hard to call a country like Iraq a state in the full sense of the word. And even worse, there are now international players that are irrational, like the Al Qaeda organization. And we can certainly also ask if the leader of a strong and important country like Iran is a rational player.

In my view, we must explain to the world that the priorities of the international community must change, and that all the previous benchmarks - the Warsaw Pact, the NATO Alliance, socialist countries, capitalist countries - have changed. There is a world order that the countries of the free world are trying to preserve, and there are forces, or countries or extremist entities that are trying to violate it.

The claim that what is threatening the world today is the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is a way of evading reality. The reality is that the problems are coming from the direction of Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iran and Iraq.

What is important is to maintain global and regional stability. Egypt is definitely an important country in the Arab world, a stabilizing factor in the regional system and perhaps even beyond that, and I certainly view it as an important partner. I would be happy to visit Egypt and to host Egyptian leaders here, including the Egyptian Foreign Minister - all based on mutual respect.

I think that we have been disparaging many concepts, and we have shown the greatest distain of all for the word “peace.” The fact that we say the word “peace” twenty times a day will not bring peace any closer. There have been two governments here that took far-reaching measures: the Sharon government and the Olmert government. They took dramatic steps and made far-reaching proposals. We saw the Disengagement and the Annapolis Conference.

Yisrael Beiteinu was not then part of the coalition, Avigdor Liberman was not the foreign minister and, even if we had wanted to, we would have been unable to prevent peace. But none of these far-reaching measures have brought peace. To the contrary. We have seen that, after all the gestures that we made, after all the dramatic steps we took and all the far-reaching proposals we presented, in the past few years this country has gone through the Second War in Lebanon and Operation Cast Lead - and not because we chose to. I have not seen peace here. It is precisely when we made all the concessions that I saw the Durban Conference, I saw two countries in the Arab world suddenly sever relations, recalling their ambassadors - Mauritania and Qatar. Qatar suddenly became extremist.

We are also losing ground every day in public opinion. Does anyone think that concessions and constantly saying “I am prepared to concede,” and using the word “peace” will lead to anything? No, that will just invite pressure, and more and more wars. "Si vis pacem, para bellum" - if you want peace, prepare for war; be strong.

We definitely want peace, but the other side also bears responsibility. We have proven our desire for peace more than any other country in the world. No country has made concessions the way Israel has. Since 1977, we have given up areas of land three times the size of the State of Israel. So we have proven the point.

The Oslo process began in 1993. Sixteen years have passed since then, and I do not see that we are any closer to a permanent settlement. There is one document that binds us and it is not the Annapolis Conference. That has no validity. When we drafted the basic government policy guidelines, we certainly stated that we would honor all the agreements and all the undertakings of previous governments. The continuity of government is respected in Israel. I voted against the Road Map, but that was the only document approved by the Cabinet and by the Security Council - I believe it was Resolution 1505. It is a binding resolution and it binds this government as well.

The Israeli government never approved Annapolis, neither the Cabinet nor the Knesset, so anyone who wants to amuse himself can continue to do so. I have seen all the proposals made so generously by Ehud Olmert, but I have not seen any results.

So we will therefore act exactly according to the Road Map, including the Tenet document and the Zinni document. I will never agree to our waiving all the clauses - I believe there are 48 of them - and going directly to the last clause, negotiations on a permanent settlement. No. These concessions do not achieve anything. We will adhere to it to the letter, exactly as written. Clauses one, two, three, four - dismantling terrorist organizations, establishing an effective government, making a profound constitutional change in the Palestinian Authority. We will proceed exactly according to the clauses. We are also obligated to implement what is required of us in each clause, but so is the other side. They must implement the document in full, including - as I said - the Zinni document and the Tenet document. I am not so sure that the Palestinian Authority or even we - in those circles that espouse peace so much - are aware of the existence of the Tenet and Zinni documents.

When was Israel at its strongest in terms of public opinion around the world? After the victory of the Six Day War, not after all the concessions in Oslo Accords I, II, III and IV. Anyone who wants to maintain his status in public opinion must understand that if he wants respect, he must first respect himself. I think that, at least from our standpoint, will be our policy.

Saudis ban entertainment at women's charity events

From Al-Arabiya:

An official decree by Saudi Arabia has banned all forms of entertainment at women's charity events, according to press reports Thursday.
The Ministry of Social Affairs issued an urgent decree banning music, dancing, singing, and fashion shows at events held by women's charitable organizations, which make up 16 percent of the kingdom's 500 organizations, the London-based Asharq al-Awsat reported.

The decree came on the heels of the first fashion show, part of a designer contest for women, held in the kingdom last week.
Besides entertainment, the decree stipulates that all activities that contradict customs and traditions are banned. Fashion shows are only allowed if the clothes are displayed on mannequins, but no human models.

The ministry assigned its officials in each of the kingdom's 13 provinces the task of reviewing and authorizing all events organized by charitable associations and making sure the program does not include any banned activities.

Now, why would only women's charities be singled out? Presumably these events are women-only. Could it be that Saudis can't stand the idea of women having fun even among themselves?

And does this mean that the idea of women having fun, away from men, is so reprehensible that charities must lose money?

"There is no escaping the fact that the day will come when we will free the Golan, through peace or through war," Syrian President Bashar Assad said Thursday.

He added: "We have our principles, and whoever abides by them will not constitute a problem for us."

According to Assad, "From the war of Palestine (in 1948) to the occupation of the Golan (in the Six Day War – R.N.) people are becoming more hostile towards Israel. There may come a generation that is unwilling to talk peace.

"There is now a resurgence of the idea of resistance. Israel is advancing in a direction that goes against its interests, and eventually all people are moving towards resistance, which is certainly in the interest of the Arabs."

This points to a fundamental difference between Israel and most of its neighbors. To Israel, the major goal is peace. The means to get to that goal is negotiations, concessions, and sometimes through shows of strength, but the ultimate goal is to live in peace with her neighbors.

To Arabs, though, peace is not the goal. The goal is land, concessions, "Palestinian rights," apologies, compensation, and a whole host of other demands - but the end-goal is not to have peace.

For Israel, concessions are a way to bring peace. For the Arabs, the pretense of "peace" is a way to wrangle a never-ending stream of concessions.

Which is, as Assad implies, exactly how they view war and terrorism ("resistance.")

What kind of a peace can be expected when one side views it as a tactic and not as a goal?

Bahais attacked in Egypt

From al-Arabiya:

In the latest outburst of religious tensions in Egypt, dozens of villagers set fire to Bahai homes after hearing on television that the village was "full of Bahais," reports said Thursday.

Angry villagers rampaged through Sharoniyah, in southern Egypt, on Monday and Tuesday, setting fire to and damaging four Bahai homes, a security official told AFP, asking not to be named.

The fires spread to two Muslim homes which were also damaged, the official said. The villagers also threatened the village's roughly 30 Bahais with death, the official said, after which all of them fled.

The arson attacks were the culmination of unrest that began with stone throwing immediately after a Bahai named Ahmed called a television talk show that was discussing the religious minority on Saturday night.

Ahmed, who now lives in Cairo after fleeing persecution in Sharoniyah, described the village as ‘full of Bahais,’ which showed that Egypt's around 2,000 Bahais are not just a minority in Cairo.

A column in the state-owned al-Gomhuriyah newspaper said on Tuesday that the Bahais, whose world headquarters are in Haifa, Israel, are connected to "world Zionism."

Columnist Gamal Abdel Rahim described the Bahai as "a deviant group which seeks to harm Islam to serve the interests of the enemies of the Muslim religion, in particular world Zionism."

Hamas declares obscenity to be "natural"

After today's terror attack of a Palestinian Arab literally butchering a 13-year old boy with an axe, Hamas announced:

"This attack was committed in the framework of the resistance," Ayman Taha said. "This is a reaction to the continuing occupation and the continued building of settlements."

"This is a natural reaction," he said, "especially against the backdrop of Israel attacks. We are a people occupied, and it is our right to defend ourselves and to act in every way and with every means at our disposal in order to defend ourselves."

This is not the first time that Hamas labeled terror attacks against innocent civilians to be "natural." They said it after an 86-year old Jewish man was murdered in Gilo, they said it after a Jewish woman was murdered with a bulldozer, they said it after many teens were massacred in their school.

In fact, Hamas believes that any attack against Jews is natural. When terrorists bragged about raping Jewish women as "revenge" against the Jews, Hamas didn't say a word against it. It is literally impossible to imagine a scenario where Hamas and other Palestinian Arab terror groups would condemn any attack that can possibly be claimed to be against Zionists worldwide.

Hamas has redefined any obscenity to be natural - if it is done by Arabs.

The labeling of heinous, disgusting crimes as "natural" is, in many ways, worse than the terror itself. It creates a mentality, already embraced by many in the West, that terrorism (disguised as "defense" or "resistance") is a human right, and that there is nothing that could be remotely considered immoral if the victims happen to be Jews who live in the Middle East. It is enshrining hate and it needs to be deplored, not with mealy mouthed official condemnations, but as an indictment of the entire Palestinian Arab mindset that glorifies obscenity. Israel should pronounce Hamas and their supporters not just to be "terrorists" but to be a vile, sickening bunch of animals who do not deserve any consideration, let alone respect, and who have - with their own words - dehumanized themselves.

Israel needs to emphasize that the most loathesome people are heroes in the twisted Palestinian Arab culture and that to even entertain the idea of negotiating with people like that is beyond absurd.

Brave Palestinian Arab axes Jewish boy to death

A Palestinian Arab man attacked Jews with an axe in Bat Ayin, killing a 13 year old boy and injuring a 7-year old. The terrorist escaped to a neighboring Arab village, where the peace-loving residents will hide their latest hero. Israel Matzav is liveblogging it.

There is zero chance that any Palestinian Arab will publicly show disgust at this act of deliberately attacking and murdering children. There is zero chance that the Arab village will hand this murderous scum over to any authorities. There is a 100% chance that this attack will be praised or, at the least, justified by the mainstream Palestinian Arab society and media. There is a 100% chance that multiple terror groups will vie for the honor of taking credit for this attack - in fact, that has already happened, with both Fatah and Islamic Jihad claiming responsibility.

As horrible as Qassam rockets aimed at civilians are, and as disgusting and deadly as suicide bombers are, there is something even more viscerally reprehensible at the thought of a man taking an axe and deliberately attacking children with it. Given the history of the Arab world celebrating Samir Kuntar, who similarly murdered a four year old girl by bashing her head in after murdering her father, this depravity is considered heroic and worthy of emulation. If the murderer gets caught, there will be summer camps in Ramallah named after him next year.

At this time, only Palestine Today is reporting this story in Arabic, referring to the dead boy as a "settler." And the entire world considers "settlers" to be subhuman already.

The Elder of Ziyon Haggadah

The Elder of Ziyon Haggadah for 5769/2009 is ready and available for download.

It contains the full Haggadah text, including English (except for Nirtzah.) It includes dozens of commentaries that I found on the Internet, almost all from a religious-Zionist perspective. Many of the commentaries assume that the audience is religious, so there are many transliterations of Hebrew words that I did not translate. I did not write anything original; I just compiled and edited it, pretty quickly.

The Haggadah is in PDF format, suitable for printing. It is 61 pages long and looks pretty decent when printed two-sided on a color printer.

To download it, click here and then click on the Download button.

חג שמח!

Hamas, Fatah fight over "Al Quds" celebrations

From Ma'an:

Palestinian division has overshadowed events celebrating Al-Quds Capital of Arab Culture 2009; celebrations are disparate, scattered and above all dominated by the factions hosting them.

Nowhere is this more apparent these days than in the two launches of Al-Quds Cultural events; on 17 March in Gaza, and on the 21st in the West Bank.

While only a few days separate the festivities the impact of the division spreads far beyond the immediate audiences and on to the viewers in other Arab nations who wish to share in the celebration of a great Arab Capital.

Each side has a multi-million dollar budget, allocated to figures close to the Palestinian Authority and de facto government offices. In the West Bank Dr Rafiq Al-Husseini, advisor to the President, controls a five million US dollar budget, while in Gaza member of the de facto government’s minister’s council Dr Atallah Abu Al-Sabeh controls the close to two million dollars allocated to the Al-Quds events.

For his part Abu As-Sabeh in Gaza described local events as “strong and successful,” but said that the internal division was palpable at each show.

“It looks like the shows in Gaza and the West Bank are competing with each other,” he said, “and that does no good for the audiences at home and abroad.”

“I just hope this does not reflect badly on Jerusalem,” he added.

Don't worry, Abu. Jerusalem will remain the most beautiful city in the world under Jewish control no matter how many Arabs fight each other over their claims.

Notice that millions of dollars of Western aid is going into these purely political events to make Jerusalem, Judenrein.

By the way, a good indication of the violence-loving psychology of Palestinian Arabs can be seen by the what they name their terrorist rockets after: Jerusalem and the Temple Mount. Fatah's rocket is called the Al-Aqsa and Islamic Jihad calls theirs the Al-Quds.

Can you imagine, say, Spanish bombs called "Vaticans" or Italian rockets called "Bethlehems"? For normal people, their holy sites stand for peace, not war; for Palestinian Arabs, holiness is war.

April Islamic Fools open thread

There are no shortage of Muslim myths that are appropriate on April Fool's Day, like
"Yasser Arafat was poisoned by evil Joooz" or "Palestinians are suffering from a genocide."

Here's one from Iraq:

James Hider, the Middle East correspondent for the London Times and a self-confessed arachnophobe, was covering the U.S. Marines' campaign in Fallujah where he heard reports that the city's preachers would boost the Islamic fighters' morale with tales that Allah had sent in legions of “chair-sized arachnids, whose poisoned hairs could make a human body turn blue and explode in a shower of corrupted blood.” Oh, and the spiders also scream along at 40 kms an hour.

And don't forget Gaza's "Angels from Allah."

See also MEMRI's Top Conspiracy Theories of 2006 and the links there for earlier ones.

Meanwhile, post anything interesting you might have seen while surfing today...

Ain't got no time

...to blog.

Still working on the Elder Haggadah; hope to have that ready soon.

Palestinian "journalist"'s unfair advantage

One of the most prolific - and hateful - Palestinian Arab journalists is Khaled Amayreh, who we've quoted before as calling the PA "Zionist proxy scum!" He breathes bile, often at the "Palestine Think Tank" site.

One recent article compares the Palestinian Arab children's orchestra who played for Holocaust survivors in Israel to Holocaust victims forced to play music for Nazis. The pure hatred he feels for all things Israeli and Jewish is palpable.

Another from today calls the new Israeli government

an extremist coalition of war criminals, pathological liars, racist thugs (both of the Hitlerian and Stalinist styles), and hateful religious maniacs who inhale and exhale hatred 24 hours per day.

...I am, of course, in no way suggesting that the previous Israeli government was less nefarious than the new one. The previous government of the evil trio Olmert, Livni and Barak had all the hallmarks of a Zionist Third Reich.

But from looking at his website, I can see how he knows so much. You see, Khaled Amayreh has an advantage as a journalist that allows him to see the truth and to dismiss any Zionist propaganda.

He can read minds!

Right below where he calls himself a "peace activist" on his "About Us" page, he writes that his interests include "outer space and parapsychology."

People who are interested in astronomy do not refer to their interests as "outer space," which means that Amayreh not only believes in mind reading and telekinesis, but he probably has a direct connection to aliens and flying saucers as well!

This explains his deep knowledge of the facts as well as his devotion to truth. His main source is Zrfgpl from the planet Zyrkle-8, who happens to also be a rabid anti-semite.

Saudi women's advocacy group folds

From the Arab News:

A proposal to establish a first-of-its-kind organization to support women’s rights in Saudi Arabia has been dropped shattering the hopes of Saudi women for an official organization that would fight for their rights.
“We failed to obtain official approval to operate legally,” said Sulaiman Al-Salman, the man who came up with the idea to establish the society, Ansar Al-Mar’ah (Supporters of Women).
Al-Salman said he has been in constant conflict with the Ministry of Social Affairs to gain approval, adding that the ministry’s rejection has frustrated the group’s determination and that group members have, as a result, lost interest.
“I recently called members for a meeting, but no one showed up apart from one member who said he would be willing to join again once the society gets approved,” he said. “I realized that I was the only one working for this goal, all alone. So I decided to break it up,” he said.
He added that Ansar Al-Mar’ah does not enjoy support in some official circles because it includes members of both genders.

Support for women in the sharia state of Saudi Arabia seems to be a bit...lacking.

Iranian logic

One of the most often-used arguments in favor of anti-semitism is that since there is such a long history of persecution of Jews, the Jews must have done something really evil to deserve it.

In normal enlightened societies where racism and bigotry are frowned upon, the haters are the ones who are put on the defensive. But in the twisted world of the bigots, the innocents who are persecuted are the ones who must prove they shouldn't be hated, an impossible task.

In today's world, the two major recent recipient groups of unbridled hate are "Zionists" and Americans. And just like classic anti-semitism, the haters are arguing that their hate is justified because everyone else is doing it.

From the Los Angeles Times, in part of a response by an advisor to Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to President Obama's Persian New Year's greetings:

In all corners of the world, it is worth noting, the only flags being set ablaze belong to the U.S. and the occupying Zionist regime.

See? Because Muslims have a love of burning flags, then the nations whose flags are burned must all be evil! QED!

I would add that the major targets of shoe-throwing incidents have been Israelis and Americans as well. The author can feel free to use that argument next time.

Birkat HaChamah, 1897

Via Daled Amos, an article from the April 8, 1897 New York Times:

The mental picture of a European rabbi who barely knows English explaining to an Irish New York cop about Birkat HaChamah is really amusing.

Birkat HaChamah will be observed on April 8 this year.

PalArabs support the "peace process" - and terror

A recent poll of Palestinian Arabs from the PCPSR shows what would appear to be a contradiction.

61.9% say they support the peace process while less than 20% oppose it. Yet 54.2% of Palestinian Arabs also support terror attacks against civilians in Israel, while only 42.7% oppose terror.

In Gaza, the seeming incongruity is even starker: 66.9% support terror attacks and 31.6% oppose - but 73.3% support the peace process, with only 15.5% opposing!

How can the Palestinian Arabs support peace and terror at the same time?

The answer is, of course, that they can't, and don't. They aren't in favor of peace - they are in favor of a "peace process." There is a big difference between the two, a difference that the West refuses to acknowledge.

Peace is the acceptance of the other party's rights and the desire to live and work together.
The "peace process," on the other hand, is a Trojan horse meant to weaken Israel for an ultimate attack to destroy the Jewish state.

The idea of using "peace" as a method of winning land that couldn't be conquered has been part and parcel of Arab thought since 1977, and it remains ingrained among Palestinian Arabs today. They have seen that the combination of terror attacks and fake peace overtures has gotten them effective control of Gaza and much of the West Bank, and this is a formula that they will not give up as long as the West pressures Israel to accept illusory "peace."

The "peace process" and real peace are antithetical.

UNRWA teachers overwhelmingly support Hamas

From JPost:

Hamas supporters scored a victory in elections for the school teachers' union of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) that were held in the Gaza Strip on Wednesday.

The results showed that Hamas won all 11 seats of the teachers' union.

The Hamas victory means that Hamas supporters will continue to control UNRWA-run schools and other academic institutions throughout the Gaza Strip. Hamas has controlled the UNRWA teachers' union for the past 16 years.

Some 10,100 UNRWA workers participated in the election, with the turnout being estimated at more than 97 percent.

The voting was conducted at UNRWA's main headquarters in the Gaza Strip.

Just a small reminder that, no matter what UNRWA says, the people who teach at UNRWA schools support terrorism.

Arabs sick of Palestinian issue

From Ma'an:

The results of the Arab Summit in Doha were unrealistic and lacked any practical measures to ensure goals are met, said Palestine’s Islamic resistance movement Hamas on Tuesday.

A special statement from Hamas spokesperson Fawzi Barhoum said the summit failed to deal with the Palestinian issue, and neglected the suffering of Gazans following Israel’s three week war on the Strip.

“We were expecting that this summit would be different than the other summits and put practical steps to protect the Palestinian territories, especially Jerusalem and to help Gazans; but it is all the same,” Barhoum’s statement read.

The focus of the Arab summit turned to Sudan's President Omar Al-Beshir, who was strongly supported by Arab states against the arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court in The Hauge. Al-Beshir stands accused of committing war crimes in Darfur.

Xinhua adds:

For the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip, the Arab summit only called on Israel to lift its siege on the territory. Hamas had hoped that the Arabs would do more than calls to overcome the blockade.
"We were hoping the Arab leaders would move to lift the siege by acts, not by words," Barhoum added. "We also hoped they would use their pressure cards against the Zionist occupation."

All together now:

"Awwwwwww!"

In recent years, Arab countries seem to be sick and tired of Palestinian Arabs. While they keep saying that it is their highest priority, in reality they only use the issue to blame their own problems on Israel and shield themselves from criticism. Decades of incessant whining and, worse, demands from the Palestinian Arabs have turned them off, and the Hamas/Fatah infighting has accelerated their anger. They'll tell the world that the Palestinian issue must be fixed before any other unrelated Arab problems, but privately they don't give a damn.

Yet the West has not yet picked up on this, as clueless Europeans and Americans keep insisting that fixing the unfixable Palestinian Arab problem is a magic key to solving all the problems of the Middle East.

Doha, where the only solidarity the Arabs had was to show support for a genocidal dictator, proves otherwise.

UPDATE: This post from last year shows even more conclusively that Arabs do not consider Palestinians to be a good investment.

Wild Saudi women let loose in all-girl coffee shops

From the Saudi Gazette:

Women’s coffee shops are no longer just meeting places for friends or refuges for a moment’s escape from the daily routine. Instead, according to some, they have become the haunts of university students and schoolgirls playing truant to indulge themselves in smoking shisha pipes and cigarettes, with women using the locations as impromptu job agencies, and matchmakers seeking willing bribes. Behind the walls of women’s coffee shops, some say, all sorts of things go on.

Salwan Abdullah, a 24-year-old university student, recalls the first time she was invited by a student friend to go to an all-female coffee shop. “I had no idea of what went on in these places, and when we entered the room was crowded with university students and girls from secondary and intermediate school. The air was full of smoke from shisha pipes and cigarettes. There were married and single girls, and women matchmakers going round asking girls if they were looking for husbands and if so what sort of features they were looking for.”

“I saw the same thing in another café during school exam time,” Salwan continued. “I saw girls in school uniform, no more than 14 years old, going into the bathrooms to change into jeans and T-shirts and putting on make-up they’d hidden in their school bags along with their cigarettes.”

“Girls have become more and more daring in coffee shops,” said university student Khuloud. “I once saw two girls among a group smoking shisha and laughing out loud as if it were the most normal thing in the world, and I could tell from their eyes that they were proud of it.”

Sara, a science student at King Abdulaziz University, described some of the behavior she saw in coffee shops as “incredible.”

“It goes completely against our ethics,” she said. “In one of the larger coffee shops I saw girls dressed very immodestly, acting as if they were young male teenagers, drinking coffee and tea, and there was a special place for listening to music which had been turned into some sort of place for dancing and showing off their bodies. Families need to keep an eye on this and prevent this sort of behavior in our conservative society.”

Smoking? Dancing? Make-up? Jeans? Acting like boys?

What could make Saudi girls want to act like this?

It couldn't possibly be living in a society where they are forced, 24 hours a a day, to avoid accidentally being seen by any man, could it?

No...it must be that they are simply immoral.

Money doesn't buy influence from Arabs

Diplomats are addicted to the idea of "influence." The thinking goes that they can influence how other entities act by dangling carrots or threatening with sticks. In recent times, sticks have gone out of fashion and the carrots have proliferated, but either way, the thinking is that by offering positive incentives, intransigent parties can become more malleable. Likewise, by offering a steady stream of positive incentives, the implicit threat of withdrawing them can likewise influence parties to act in more acceptable ways.

In the Arab and Muslim worlds, the entire carrot idea is not only ineffective, but it is derided as a perfect example of Western stupidity. It is as if both the scientists and the laboratory rats are convinced that each one has conditioned the other one to behave in the way they want. Paying off a party who is already resentful or hateful does not tend to make them change their minds nearly as much as it is supposed.

A perfect example of this comes from an Al Ahram article from last week, talking about the wisdom of Camp David from Egypt's perspective by countering arguments of those who were opposed. The last section has this very instructive section (h/t Judeopundit):

The last charge against the Egyptian-Israeli Peace Treaty that I would like to address here is that which maintains that it turned Egypt into a US dependency. The contention could only come from someone who is not quite mentally stable, or that has never read history, or that does not know the true nature of Egypt, the Egyptian people and the Egyptian government. Clearly, no rational person would fail to take the world's sole superpower into account. But all that country's economic and political clout has not prevented Egypt from casting its vote contrary to that of the US in 83 per cent of issues that came to a vote in the UN (compare this to Israel's record of voting with the US in 87 per cent of the cases). History is full of instances of Egypt's ability to stand firm in the face of US demands. Cairo refused to cooperate with the American attack against Libya in the 1980s and it refused to exert pressure on the Palestinians during the negotiations that took place in the 1990s. Indeed, Egypt, which signed a peace agreement with Israel, has been the foremost obstacle to the rush to normalisation with the Hebrew state, keeping normalisation as a major card in the negotiating process between the Arabs and Israel, in perpetual defiance of Washington's wishes. Nor is it a secret that all the "advice" given by Washington regarding domestic change was not heeded. In fact, those who hold that Egypt is a US dependency would do well to study the entire chapter of the past eight years when Cairo was at constant loggerheads with the Bush administration. Moreover, even then Egypt remained the largest recipient of arms and money from Washington apart from Israel. This was the product of wisdom and skill...

Egypt has been playing the US, accepting billions of dollars of aid while not changing its policies towards US interests one iota. All of the benefits of the Egyptian/Israeli peace treaty, as enumerated by the author in the rest of the article, would be just as effective without US largesse.

In other words, all the billions of dollars given by the US to Egypt, ostensibly to influence that country, have gone to waste.

Washington's influence over Israel is not predicated on aid money but on shared interests and a deep friendship. That is what makes a reliable ally. And as we see from this article, Egypt is anything but.

Syphilitic dead terrorist in the news

A new website has been set up by the Yasser Arafat Foundation to celebrate the life of the world's foremost modern terrorist.

Don't take my word for it; here is how Arafat is described in his biography on the site (autotranslated):

Yasser Arafat, leader of the Palestinian people and the revolution of modern bomber, and one of the most great leaders in the world during the twentieth century, the struggle and fought a relentless jihad for more than half a century ago on various fronts, the name of life for the cause of Palestine and its people in human rights awareness, and the development of the Palestinian issue on the political map of the World .

In normal English, this means that Arafat innovated in the modern use of murdering civilians deliberately to gain attention for his cause.

The Foundation's biography of the AIDS-stricken martyr starts off with a lie:

Born and raised in Jerusalem

Born, "Yasser Mohammed," Abdel-Raouf Arafat al-Husseini Kidwa. Known to be the name of Yasser Arafat in Jerusalem, the fourth day of August 1929, the sixth in the family of Daoud Abdel-Raouf Arafat al-Husseini and mother Kidwa Zahwa Khalil Abu Al-Saud, in the corner house in the honorary, the point of view of Abu Al-Saud, in the South West of the Temple Mount Al-Sharif.

Of course, Arafat was born in Cairo and his relationship with his father was so poor that he didn't attend his funeral in 1952 and never visited his Gaza grave.

The man behind the website and the Arafat Foundation, named Nasser Al-Kidwa (who is Arafat's nephew,) has also announced that he is starting a "Commission of Truth" to investigate exactly how Arafat died. Given that he has already established himself as a liar, it isn't too hard to imagine who he will conclude was behind the likely AIDS-ravaged murderer's death.

Clan clash!

From Ma'an:

A young Palestinian man was killed and six others were injured on Monday afternoon after a fight broke out between two families at Balata Refugee Camp east of Nablus.

Palestinian security sources said Ma’an that 25-year-old Saher Mahmoud Sawalmeh, a policeman, was killed after being injured in a clash at the camp as a result of being struck on the head with an iron bar. Shortly after his arrival at Rafidia Hospital he died, they said.

Sources added that six others were wounded in the clash and that Palestinian security services arrived at the scene and arrested a number of people who were allegedly involved.

The 2009 PalArab self-death count is now at 60.

New Israeli MK supports Iranian nukes

In other countries, this would be considered treason. From The Bulletin:

Hanin Zoabi is the first woman to be elected to the Knesset, Israel’s parliament, as a representative of an Arab party. Ms. Zoabi, former director of the I’lam: Media Center for Arab Palestinians in Israel, is a feminist and strong secularist. She is now one of three representatives of the Balad (National Democratic Assembly) Party.

On one of her first days in the Knesset, the new parliamentarian asked for her thoughts regarding increased Iranian influence in Gaza. Ms. Zoabi replied that she welcomed it.

She said, “If this influence is supporting me, so I will not mind this influence. Even, I would ask for this influence ... The question is not whether there is an influence or not, the question whether this influence is supporting you, can support your demands or can go against your demands.”

Queried regarding Iran’s quest to manufacture nuclear weapons, she stated was that “It would [sic] be more supporting me to have a counter-power to Israel” and “I need something to balance its [Israel’s] power.”

She also spoke of Egypt and Jordan as being a threat to the Arabs of the Gaza Strip, intimating that they are scared of a free and democratic Palestinian state.

Ms. Zoabi was then asked if she felt worried due to the fact that Iran is getting close to acquiring a nuclear weapon and because she lives in close proximity to Jews. She replied, “No, I am not, I’m afraid from the nuclear Iran, I am more afraid from the Israeli nuclear [weapons].”

Israel does not officially admit to being a nuclear power, yet it is generally accepted that it has been a nuclear power since the 1960s.

When asked if she thought that Iran would use nuclear weapons, she deliberately misunderstood and replied, “The Israelis? I think yes. And I am afraid from real risk rather than from potential risk.” She said that everyone is asking about potential risk while “Every day the Israeli uses its violence, army violence.”

“The Iranian is a potential … but the real risk is the Israeli army.”

She was then asked if an Iranian bomb would lead to a nervous America and thus more U.S. pressure on Israel and if that would be good for her she replied “Exactly.”

Asked about Israel as a Jewish state, Ms. Zoabi declared that the very concept of a Jewish state is “inherently racist,” saying that Israel must be turned into a “state of all its citizens,” which would eliminate its Jewish or Zionist nature.

The irony of an elected Israeli Arab MK, who while declaring her allegiance to a foreign power also calls Israel a racist state, is apparently lost on Ms. Zoabi.

If only the reporter would have asked her is the "Islamic Republic of Iran" or every Arab country is inherently racist by her definition, and if she would answer honestly, then she could compare the criticisms she'll receive from the Jewish state from the ones she would receive from her Arab brethren....

(h/t Jameel via email)

Qaddafi goes nuts in Doha

It looks like the good Colonel has not mellowed in his old age:

Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi stormed out of an Arab summit on Monday after denouncing the Saudi king and declaring himself "the dean of Arab rulers."
Gadhafi disrupted the opening Arab League summit in Qatar by taking a microphone and criticizing Saudi's King Abdullah, calling him a "British product and American ally."
When the Qatari emir tried to quiet him, the Libyan leader and current Africa Union chairman insisted he be allowed to speak.
"I am an international leader, the dean of the Arab rulers, the king of kings of Africa and the imam (leader) of Muslims, and my international status does not allow me to descend to a lower level," Gadhafi said.
He then got up and walked out of the summit hall.

Doha looks like it will be fun to follow!

Doha showcasing Arab disunity and support for genocide

There is an Arab League summit starting today in Doha, Qatar, and - as usual - it highlights the differences between Arabs more that their purported "unity."

In fact, pretty much the only unified statements that the Arab League has ever made have been support of Palestinian Arabs and denunciations of Israel.

This year, Egypt refused to attend, due to disputes between Egypt and Qatar. Egypt feels that Qatar has fallen under the influence of Iran and Qatar, including through Al Jazeera, has bitterly criticized Egypt for keeping the Rafah border closed.

Saudi King Abdullah walked out of the opening session following remarks made by Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi.

But there is one issue that the Arab League does seem unified about this year: supporting genocidal Sudanese president al-Bashir.

The Arab leaders are expected to show support for Al-Bashir after the International Criminal Court (ICC) indicted him for war crimes and crimes against humanity in the conflict in Sudan’s Darfur province. The indictment is perceived in the Middle East as a Western attempt to undermine a sitting Arab leader.

Al-Bashir adviser Mustafa Osman Ismail told reporters in Doha, according to Reuters, "We expect this popular uprising of support for Sudan, not just in the Arab world, to be translated into a strong resolution that meets the hopes of the Arab street."

Hmmm...the Arab League defying the International Criminal Court? But I thought that they had such respect for international law!

What I have been working on

With what little free time I had on Sunday, I decided to start creating a Passover gift for Elder of Ziyon readers.

Soon, I hope to be able to post a full EoZ Passover Haggadah.

It will not have any original material; it will just be a series of commentaries that I have taken from various websites that have a religious Zionist perspective, along with the full text in Hebrew and most of the full text in English. Since I didn't spend that much time on it, there will be inconsistencies in the transliterations and such between the commentaries, and some of the commentaries assume a fairly deep knowledge of Jewish texts and "yeshivish" Hebrew, but there should be enough material to add a dimension to your Seder.

If any of my readers wants to add their own Zionist-oriented divrei Torah to the Haggadah, I will be happy to put them in and give proper credit. Just do it by tonight!

The beautiful and talented Daughter of Ziyon plans to create the cover art tomorrow, and then I will try to post a PDF that can be downloaded.

I hope it comes out well, and I hope you like it!

Most Bahrani wife-beaters went to college

Another nail in the coffin of the idea that poverty and desperation causes violence among Arabs:

More than 60 percent of Bahraini men who abuse their wives have higher education, according to Baqer Al-Najjar, a professor of sociology at the University of Bahrain. He said Bahrain should invest more in counseling services.
“An academic qualification does not rule out violence. We need more family guidance centers across the country to deal with this issue,” Al-Najjar said, while speaking at a symposium organized by the General Organization of Youth and Sports recently.
Banna Buzaboon, head of the Batelco Care Center for Domestic Violence, said most of the people visiting counseling clinics were lawyers, doctors and engineers of both sexes. “Violence exists at all levels and in many forms. About 80 percent of women who are victims of domestic violence undergo therapy and rehabilitation process that could take up to 10 years,” said Buzaboon.
She said her center received about 1,200 cases in the first three months of this year. The doctor added that hospitals were increasingly dealing with domestic violence cases, especially during vacations and weekends.

We have already seen that most terrorists and their supporters are also middle- and upper-class, many of them well educated.

Unfortunately, to blame Arab culture for Arab violence is seen as a form of bigotry, rather than a fairly obvious conclusion.