Elder Of Ziyon - Israel News

Tuesday, November 29, 2011

Foreign Policy praises a lying conspiracy theorist as a "global thinker"

Foreign Policy magazine put out their annual list of Top 100 Global Thinkers, and coming in at #28 are Mahmoud Abbas and Salam Fayyad, "for forging a path between violence and surrender."

"Enough, enough, enough." With those words at the U.N. General Assembly, Mahmoud Abbas finally stepped out of Yasir Arafat's shadow and began to build his own legacy as a Palestinian nationalist. Abbas, who has guided the Palestinian Authority through nearly seven post-Arafat years, took the bold step in 2011 of giving voice to Palestinians' widespread exasperation with a 20-year "peace process" by taking their cause directly to the United Nations, where he appealed to the world's preeminent international body for recognition. The U.N. statehood gambit, conceived last winter after negotiations with Israel ground to a halt, may have been greeted with cries of dismay in Washington and Tel Aviv, but it galvanized the world's attention in a way that dozens of suicide bombers never could.

I never knew that repeatedly saying "no" to negotiations and adding condition after condition to peace talks makes someone a great thinker, but then again, I must not be as smart as the rocket scientists at Foreign Policy, who define "making serious compromises for peace" as "surrender."

After all, Abbas' speech at the UN was brilliant, just brilliant. It takes real skill to write a speech with dozens of lies and still be considered a serious statesman. It takes brains to brag about intransigence in Arabic and pretend to be a peacemaker in English. And it takes a very high IQ to calculate that you can blatantly lie about what the leader of the free world said only a year before - and get a pass from place like Foreign Policy magazine.

The world needs to know that one of Foreign Policy's top global thinkers believes that Israelis raise and train wild dogs and boars to attack Palestinian Arabs.

One thing is for sure:

Abbas is a lot smarter than the folks at Foreign Policy.

Useless UNIFIL contradicts itself after Lebanon rocket fire into Israel

From YNet:

One of the Katyushas

The IDF confirmed Tuesday that two Katyusha rockets were fired at the western Galilee from Lebanon on Monday night. No injuries were reported, but several structures sustained damage.

The IDF's Northern Command has been placed on high alert following the fire. The military stressed that Israel holds the Lebanese government responsible for the indicent.

Hezbollah sources denied any connection to the rocket fire. UNIFIL, which has a peacekeeping mission in southern Lebanon, has launched an investigation into the incident, but a spokesman for the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon was quoted by Beirut's radio as saying that "UNIFIL rejects reports suggesting any violation of UN Resolution 1701 and is working to restore normalcy."

Really? Rockets are fired into Israel and UNIFIL rejects the idea that there was a violation of 1701?

The UNIFIL website says the exact opposite:

UNIFIL radars detected firing of at least one rocket into Israel shortly after midnight last night from the general area of Rumaysh in south Lebanon. Israeli authorities indicated to UNIFIL that a number of rockets impacted in northern Israel.

The IDF returned artillery fire directed at the location from where the rocket fire originated.

At this time, no casualties have been reported from either side. There has been no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack.

UNIFIL, in cooperation with the parties, is currently investigating on the ground to determine the facts and circumstances of the incident as well as to locate the launching site of the rocket fire.

UNIFIL Force Commander Major-General Alberto Asarta Cuevas is maintaining close contact with the parties and has called for maximum restraint in order to prevent any escalation of the situation.

The Force Commander said: “This is a serious incident in violation of UN Security Council resolution 1701 and is clearly directed at undermining stability in the area. It is imperative to identify and apprehend the perpetrators of this attack and we will spare no efforts to this end working in cooperation with the LAF. Additional troops have been deployed on the ground and patrols have been intensified across our area of operations to prevent any further incidents.”

So either UNIFIL has no clue what it is saying, or Beirut radio lies.

From all accounts, Hezbollah has an iron grip on southern Lebanon. The idea that some tiny armed group can get a hold of Katyushas and fire them without Hezbollah's knowledge is possible but seems unlikely.

Of course, the idea that the LAF or UNIFIL will be able to investigate this and find anything out is a lot more far-fetched.

Time's Karl Vick remains clueless

How many times do we have to see people who pretend to be analysts prove themselves so incredibly, irredeemably wrong?

Here's Time magazine's Karl Vick:

[W]hat if Abbas is holding still, and Hamas is moving closer to Abbas? That's what's been happening, from nearly all appearances, for the last two or three years, and everything coming out of the Cairo meeting points in the same direction. The head of Hamas, Khaled Meshaal, and Abbas spoke for two hours, Abbas in the big chair, Meshaal on the couch with two others. Afterwards both met the cameras smiling. "There are no differences between us now," Abbas said. Mashaal went with: "We have opened a new page of partnership." And on whose terms? Hamas stands for resistance, its formal name being the Islamic Resistance Movement. But in the Gaza Strip where it governs, Hamas has largely enforced a truce with Israel since January 2009. And in Cairo it signed a paper committing itself to "popular resistance" against the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories. That's "popular" in contrast to "violent" or "military" resistance. We're talking marches here. Chanting and signs, not booby traps or suicide bombs.

"Every people has the right to fight against occupation in every way, with weapons or otherwise. But at the moment, we want to cooperate with the popular resistance," Meshaal told AFP. "We believe in armed resistance but popular resistance is a program which is common to all the factions."

For the past three years, Abbas has gone from someone actively participating in negotiations to someone who adamantly refuses to even talk with Israel under identical circumstances that the PLO negotiated for fourteen years. He has furthermore made unilateral moves, such as his UN stunt, to avoid any possible compromise with Israel - and has bragged about his intransigence. He has upset the US and the EU with his refusal to negotiate.

So much for Abbas "standing still."

Now, as far as Hamas is concerned, let's look at what they have been saying and doing in just the past week or so.

From all evidence, Hamas sacked every member of its security forces that was not explicitly a Hamas member.

Hamas reiterated that it will continue armed resistance against Israel.
Hamas named a school in Gaza after a mass murderer.
Hamas arrested four Fatah youth leaders, right after the "unity" meeting.
Another Hamas leader again reiterated that armed resistance remains an option, forever.
An analyst was quoted in Hamas' website as saying that Palestinian Arabs could never drop the option of armed resistance, because this right is (according to them) enshrined by the UN. Another emphasized that the current truce is simply to help strengthen Hamas and help Gaza recover, but it not a strategic option.
Hamas' Gaza leaders expressed great skepticism about unity with Fatah, an initiative spearheaded by Hamas' Damascus leaders.
And there is credible evidence that Hamas continues to import imported surface to air missiles into Gaza.

But Vick cannot be bothered to actually read Hamas websites in Arabic. No, if he can find an AFP interview in English, well, that must reflect the entire reality!

Hold on, though. Vick thinks he found a new piece of information!

Quite possibly biggest news out of Cairo was deep in the fine print: Efforts are under way to bring Hamas into the PLO, or Palestine Liberation Organization, the umbrella for all Palestinian factions. The PLO is the one "brand" that still resonates with ordinary Palestinians, and Hamas has wanted to join it since at least 2005. If Hamas finally gets in, the implications would appear to be immense. It would mean agreeing to the positions and agreements the PLO has already made. This includes recognizing Israel, and renouncing terror -- two things Hamas has never been willing to do. "Yes, when they are in they have to agree to the political program of the PLO," says Shaban. "This will take time." But should it occur, it would complete Hamas' move toward the center, and open the door to the international recognition craved by many in the organization.

Only one problem. It will never happen without the PLO changing its current stated positions.

Hamas cannot and will not recognize Israel. It cannot and will not accept a Jewish state in any form whatsoever. Literally. Its entire charter is based on Israel's destruction, and if Hamas can be counted upon for anything, it is to remain true to its principles. They have been remarkably consistent in their stated positions since their inception. If Vick actually believes that Hamas is one bit closer to recognizing Israel than they were in 2005 or 1995, then he is an idiot who simply refuses to open his eyes.

I can see the PLO muddying the language of its recognition of Israel to accommodate Hamas. But it is absolutely inconceivable that Hamas would accept the current stated PLO position of recognizing Israel and officially being against terrorism (a position the PLO roundly ignored only a few short years ago anyway.)

Vick, like so many other journalists, cannot distinguish between reality and what he wants to believe. And then he feeds this misinformation into the minds of equally clueless decision makers who want to believe that peace is possible as much as Vick does, and who rely on clueless pundits like him to buy the myth of a flexible Palestinian Arab leadership (and, naturally, the intransigent Israelis - the only ones who have actually made real concessions for peace, multiple times, over decades of conflict.)

Hamas is not moderating, and it never will. Just as there were people who were convinced that Hamas had moderated during the 2005 elections, and that Hamas had moderated before Cast Lead, there will always be credulous and utterly incompetent analysts who believe that Hamas is becoming more peaceful now.

And no matter how many times these pundits are proven wrong, they will continue to push their hopes and dreams as if they are reality.

Egyptian stone thrower arrested; found to have 50 shekels

Al Ahram reports that a stone thrower in Alexandria was arrested - and found to have 50 shekels in Israeli currency on him.

Michael Awad Hanna , 21, is a clothing salesman from the Giza governate, and was apprehended while throwing stones. He said that another protester gave the money to him.

The implication, of course, is that Israel is fomenting riots in Egypt.

To their credit, the commenters are mercilessly ripping apart the story, asking if the Mossad is so stupid as to pay in shekels, which are pretty worthless in Egypt, rather than euros or dollars.

But don't you see? That's their brilliance! Paying protesters - and making fools of Egyptian security at the same time!

Syrian army shoots at family attempting to flee to Jordan

From Jordan Times:

Shots rang out at the Jordanian-Syrian border late Sunday as Syrian forces attempted to prevent civilians from entering the Kingdom, hours after an Arab League decision to impose sanctions on Damascus.

Syrian soldiers opened fire on a married couple and their young child as they attempted to enter the Kingdom late yesterday near the Jaber border crossing, some 90 kilometres north of the capital, according to Minister of State for Media Affairs and Communications and Government Spokesperson Rakan Majali.

The Syrian family arrived in the Kingdom and received emergency medical attention, Majali indicated.

Incidents like this one, which occurred hours after the Arab League endorsed a series of economic sanctions targeting the regime of Syrian President Bashar Assad, have become “commonplace” over the past few months, he said.

“This has now become a very normal incident that happens nearly every day, but often without notice,” Majali told The Jordan Times.

According to Majali, the woman was rushed to Mafraq Military Hospital where medical sources indicated she was listed in serious condition as of late yesterday, adding that her husband and child were not injured in the incident.

The incident will not register a response from the Jordanian government, the spokesperson said, noting that the Kingdom will continue to extend efforts to “ensure the humanitarian protection” of Syrian civilians.

The humanitarian impact of the Syrian crisis has become an increasing concern for Jordan, which has hosted thousands of civilians fleeing violence since mid-February, with over 1,500 Syrians registered with the UN refugee agency.

Jordan has been keeping a very low profile in regards to Syrian refugees; we hear about the ones who fled to Turkey and Lebanon but not much about Syrians who flee to Jordan. I'm surprised that there are 1,500 of them.

Satellite image of damage from November 12th Iranian explosion

From ISIS:

ISIS has acquired commercial satellite imagery of a military compound near the town of Bid Kaneh1 in Iran where a large explosion occurred on November 12, 2011. Compared to an earlier picture of the site, an image taken on November 22, 2011 shows that most of the buildings on the compound appear extensively damaged (see figures 1 and 2). Some buildings appear to have been completely destroyed. Some of the destruction seen in the image may have also resulted from subsequent controlled demolition of buildings and removal of debris. There do not appear to be many pieces of heavy equipment such as cranes or dump trucks on the site, and a considerable amount of debris is still present. About the same number of trucks are visible in the image after the blast as in an image from approximately two months prior to the blast. Thus, most of the damage seen in the November 22, 2011 image likely resulted from the explosion.

ISIS learned that the blast occurred as Iran had achieved a major milestone in the development of a new missile. Iran was apparently performing a volatile procedure involving a missile engine at the site when the blast occurred.

Before:

After:

Huge explosion in Isfahan, Iran - home to nuclear weapons program (plus insta-poster!, updated)

UPDATE 11/30: Confirmation that the explosion was at a nuclear facility. New blog post here.

FARS News is reporting on a huge explosion in Isfahan, Iran. No details yet.

Isfahan hosts a Nuclear Technology Center, a Uranium Conversion Facility and a Zirconium Production Plant that helps make alloys for nuclear reactors.

According to the article, it happened at 2:40 AM.

For the occasion, a poster:

UPDATE: The FARS story has disappeared. Here's what the autotranslate looked like before it went down the memory hole:

Twitter updates/rumors:

A BBC reporter tweets his father in Isfahan heard the explosion.

Israel's Channel 10 reports that an explosion was at Shahab 4 ballistic missile site; unclear if it is the same one or where they got the information from.

Second Iranian news source confirms it, unclear if it was 2:40 AM or PM.

And another confirmation.

Iranian tweeters are all saying it was either an arms depot or an ammunition depot.

Isfahan's governor is now claiming that it was from a "military exercise."

Deputy governor says, "I dunno."

I've seen a few stories saying it happened near the gate to Shiraz University.

Mehr claims it was from a gas station explosion.

PressTV quotes officials denying the story altogether.

The secret flotilla negotiations between Turkey and Israel

Claire Berlinski, one of the best observers and reporters out of Turkey, has a must-read article on what happened during the negotiations between Israel and Turkey over the Palmer report on the flotilla:

The Turkish journalist Kadri Gürsel published an interesting piece the other day inMillyet about the failure of the negotiations between Turkey and Israel to normalize relations in the wake of the Mavi Marmara fiasco. Kadri Gürsel is a journalist whose work and opinions I take seriously; here, for example, he's written a thoughtful piece in Turkish Policy Quarterly that will help you locate him in the spectrum of Turkish political opinion.

Gürsel first places the blame for the failure of the negotiations on the Turkish foreign ministry's incompetence (he uses the more tactful phrase "lack of experience," but the Turkish foreign ministry is hardly inexperienced, so I assume we're to read between the lines). He then moves to what has become something of a standard narrative in Turkey and elsewhere: that the deal was "95 percent completed," but fell through only because of Israeli Foreign Minister Lieberman's intransigence:

But the deal was never “100 percent complete” because in Israel, the obstacle, the extreme of the extreme Lieberman was not overcome. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu could not persuade Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman for an apology and compensation. And the Turkey-Israel secret negotiations that started after the U.N. Investigation Panel was formed in August 2010, collapsed in June following the days when the draft agreement was prepared.

Matters in this “duplex channel” were held tight. The Israeli member of the U.N. Investigation Committee, Joseph Ciechanover and Ambassador Özdem Sanberk, who represented Turkey on the panel, were also negotiating through the duplex channel. The head of the panel Geoffrey Palmer and his deputy Alvaro Uribe, even if they were aware of that secret negotiations were conducted between the two countries, they did not know that Ciechanover and Sanberk were the participants. The “duplex channel” held meetings in Geneva, Bucharest and Rome.

Despite all, this draft agreement could be the operational basis for a new normalization process between Turkey and Israel. Of course, if it is possible to persuade Lieberman in the light of new situations in the Middle East.

I asked an Israeli official who was close to these negotiations--and who has thus far never provided me with information that has proved unreliable--for comment. This is what he said:

I've seen the "draft deal" and the formula for apology includes indeed the English word "apologize", though the phrase “operational mistakes that caused life losses and injuries to Turkish people” was preceded by an "if." (I can't remember the exact wording, but it went something like: Israel apologizes if there were any operational mistakes etc ... ) This was the mutually agreed formula, and by using the conditional mode, it was possible for us to apologize without admitting that we actually did something wrong, which of course we believe we didn't.

It is also correct that we agreed to pay compensations (through a bi-national fund, not directly), though the Turks did not specify at that point how much they thought would be reasonable. We thought the details and the sum could be worked out later on, based on mutual trust that would arise from the approval of the package deal.

Turkey, however, did not guarantee that "Turkish citizens and their legal representatives would not take legal action against Israel." It agreed to promise not to prosecute Israelis, but explained it could commit itself on behalf of private citizens in Turkey or abroad. This made some Israelis suspicious: what would happen if we endorsed the deal, and then had to face suits by members of the Turkish public, maybe even with covert assistance by the government? What guarantee did we have that the "deal" would actually end all claims and enable Israel and Turkey to reconcile and restart their relationship? This suspicion grew stronger in light of Turkey's insistence that the text should state that Israeli soldiers killed activists "intentionally." Why insist on this admission of guilt if not to enable legal action? As Gürsel himself says, this text which the Israeli government was supposed to approve was not completely agreed upon by Turkey, because they still wanted to include the intentionality wording. Even if the Israeli government had approved the draft, it would have left us with Turkish disavowal and discontent.

Another condition set forth by the Turks, and agreed to by Israel, was shelving the Palmer Report. Strange that Gürsel should say nothing of this, since he starts his discussion with the meaning of the Report to Turkey. The Turks were very keen on making the report disappear …

Finally, when it all came down to a discussion in the Israeli Cabinet, it wasn't just Lieberman who was reluctant to approve the whole package deal. Others, too, did not exactly trust Erdoğan, and raised doubts as to his real intentions: what would we get in return for the (indirect) apology, the compensations and the shelving of the report? Restoring ties with Ankara and an "end of conflict." But what if, after all was said and done, Erdoğan would claim that not all of his conditions were met? That Israel did not fulfill the requirements? All of a sudden, he speaks about lifting the siege on Gaza as a condition – but it was never mentioned in the negotiations nor in the draft! How easily it could have served as a pretext not to restore ties. And as for taking legal action against Israelis, well … With the intentionality clause still open, and with Turkey's non-commitment to stop private suits, and with the Palmer Report scrapped, where would it all lead us? Certainly not to an end of conflict, but rather to a further deterioration, with us in an inferior position.

This is the reason why quite a few ministers refused to endorse the draft. The Turkish anger at the leak of the Palmer Report, and Davutoğlu's hot-headed reaction and statements, only seemed to confirm our worst doubts: they were never in earnest to begin with.

(h/t Mike)

Hamas again emphasizes "armed resistance;" Fatah tacitly agrees

From Ma'an:

Senior Hamas official Ismail Radwan said Sunday that armed resistance remains a strategic option for Palestinians, while affirming that popular action was also an integral part of challenging Israel's policies.

Radwan told Ma'an: "All aspects of resistance are open and permissible and open to us."

But he stressed that it is the Palestinian factions who must decide on the ways to challenge Israel's occupation of Palestinian lands.

The comments come after Islamic Jihad said on Sunday it would support a Palestinian consensus on strategies to resist the occupation, but on condition that popular actions do not become a substitute for armed resistance.

After Hamas chief Khalid Mashaal and Fatah leader President Mahmoud Abbas met in Cairo on Thursday to progress implementation of a unity deal between the two largest political parties, the leaders said they were united in their approach to the Palestinian cause.

As we have shown countless times before, even the so-called "moderates" of Fatah and the PA have not once denounced terrorism on moral grounds, but only because it was counterproductive at that time. But if they decide it is desirable again, terrorism is back on the table.

Meaning that there is no difference between Fatah and Hamas in terms of "resistance."

Indeed, in that aspect, they are united.

Cyber Monday discounts at Elder store

You can get discounts of around 30% (depends on the item) at the EoZ Printfection store today for orders over $50.

There is no better time to show off your part in nefarious worldwide Zionist domination plans!

Use coupon code CyberMon11.

Mousepad

Germany stands for an uncompromising struggle against the Jews. It is self-evident that the struggle against the Jewish national homeland in Palestine forms part of this struggle, since such a national homeland would be nothing other than a political base for the destructive influence of Jewish interests. Germany also knows that the claim that Jewry plays the role of an economic pioneer in Palestine is a lie. Only the Arabs work there, not the Jews. Germany is determined to call on the European nations one by one to solve the Jewish problem and, at the proper moment, to address the same appeal to non-European peoples....At some not yet precisely known, but in any case not very distant point in time, the German armies will reach the southern edge of the Caucasus. As soon as this is the case, the Führer will himself give the Arab world his assurance that the hour of liberation has arrived. At this point, the sole German aim will be the destruction of the Jews living in the Arab space under the protection of British power.
---Adolf Hitler to Haj Amin Al-Husseini, mufti of Jerusalem, November 28, 1941

The Mufti of Jerusalem was the undisputed leader of Palestinian Arab nationalism from the 1920s through the 1940s, and his hatred of Jews pervaded all he did.

It will be recalled that the Mufti was given his position by the British because he was regarded as a "moderate." This is what gave him the platform to start his career of inciting against and murdering Jews in earnest.

He was responsible for the anti-Jewish pogroms in Palestine in 1920, 1921 and 1929; he initiated the deadly riots from 1936-1939, and he initiated contact with the Nazis as soon as they came to power in order to come up with ways to work together with them to get rid of the Jews.

Not only that, but towards the end of the war, he pulled out all the stops to murder Jewish children rather than have them rescued - even when the desperate Nazis were considering swapping them for money or for German prisoners. Meaning that his desire to murder Jews exceeded even that of Hitler himself.

The Mufti was an unrepentant anti-semite and desired nothing less than the complete genocide of the entire Jewish people, every man, woman and child.

Today, November 28th, is the anniversary of the Mufti's seminal meeting with Hitler where the Fuehrer explained his genocidal plans in detail to his kindred anti-semite.

Today, the Mufti of Jerusalem is considered a hero among Palestinian Arab leadership.

One year ago, Mahmoud Abbas said in a speech,

We must also recall the outstanding [early] leader of the Palestinian people, the Grand Mufti of Palestine -- Haj Mohammed Amin al-Husseini, who sponsored the struggle from the beginning, and sponsored the struggle and was displaced for the cause and died away from his home."

The Mufti isn't a Palestinian Arab hero despite his Jew-hatred.

He is a hero because of it.

The Muslim Brotherhood's election platform, in English

Today Egyptians are voting for their new parliament, and the Muslim Brotherhood is widely expected to garner more votes than any other party.

Reader Alice has found what appears to be a legitimate Muslim Brotherhood "Election Program" published on the web, in English.

Some highlights:

...We seek to play an active and influential part:

Affirming the right of the Palestinian people to liberate their land, and highlighting the duty of governments and peoples of Arab and Muslim countries, especially Egypt, to aid and support the Palestinian people and the Palestinian resistance against the Zionist usurpers of their homeland.

This means all of Israel, and the wording hardly limits itself to "non-violent" resistance.

Endeavouring to achieve full integration and cooperation in all fields with Sudan in order to ensure its safety and territorial integrity and achieve security, stability and development, including the activation of the Four Freedoms Agreement, so that we can attain true unity as a nucleus for achieving historically desired Arab unity.

The MB does not like independence for South Sudan and wants to roll back that achievement - next door to Egypt.

We appreciate the importance of restoring the role of Egypt in the Islamic domain and the need to strengthen relations with Islamic countries, especially Turkey, Iran, Malaysia, Pakistan, Indonesia, Nigeria, etc.

No Sunni/Shi'a issues here. The MB loves Iran, and vice versa.

Securing Egypt's quota of Nile water and defeat Zionist plots in this regard.

There is some background behind this one. For years, there has been talk in southern Sudan to create the Jonglei Canal, which would increase the amount of water available to the Nile by 10-15 billion cubic meters. It has never been completed. According to a report last year, Israel offered to complete this project - where everyone would gain more water - in exchange for the right to purchase a percentage of that water at a discount. I have no idea whether this report was true. But Egyptians were upset at the very idea of selling Israel any water - even if they would gain water as a result!

Encourage the film industry, both financially and morally.

Emphasis on the freedom of the press and freedom of publication of newspapers, magazines,and various other paper and electronic publications without any legal or administrative obstacles, as long as the publication abides by the Constitution and the law and takes account of public morality.

Apply a "code of honour" for the use of the internet that depends on a culture of self-immunisation rather than external censorship; to assist the protection of public morality and values in Egyptian society, with emphasis on the prevention of pornography downloads or uploads, and use of all technical and legal ways to achieve this

Ah, the "Freedom" and Justice Party.

[I]t is of paramount importance to restore to Egypt its religious leadership position in Arab, Islamic and global domains.

Yes, this is a political platform.

Finally:

The family is the oldest institution on earth. It‟s also the first incubator for breeding and upbringing of humans. To realise the importance of focusing on the construction of the family unit as a means for making and shaping the good Egyptian citizen, let's look at the outcome of the previous decades of exposure systematic corruption implemented by several parties, especially the National Council for women, the National Council for Motherhood and Childhood, and a whole list of civil society organisations that receive foreign funds from suspicious sources. Those were helped along down that slimy slope with a package of corrupt laws passed not due to public demand, but were the result of international dictates imposed on us by international conventions signed under the previous regime.

Thirty years ago, Egypt joined an international convention for women called the "Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW)" although this Convention controls the most private of the marital relationship details. Do any members of our great public know that Egypt is a party to the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), which allows a child to choose the family to live with? Do Egyptians realise that they are obliged to accept homosexuals and treat them in the best and kindest way possible, in compliance with those agreements?? Not to mention the legalisation of adoption in ways strictly forbidden in Islamic law?! Was it not our right as citizens in this country to have referenda on such conventions and agreements that control the finest details of our lives and our family relationships? Since this was not done at thetime these conventions were signed, it is our right – as a people proud of their identity and religion
– to insist on re-consideration of those agreements. Then they should be re-evaluated in terms of suitability to our culture, traditions and established values. We should have the first and last word on accession to those conventions.

Surprisingly, however, the platform does not call for Egypt to cut off natural gas shipments to Israel, but rather to increase the price of the gas to bring in some $18 billion of additional revenue annually.

Egypt pipeline bombed again. Why aren't Arabs concerned about Jordan?

From JPost:

Saboteurs blew up Egypt's gas pipeline to Jordan and Israel on Monday, witnesses and security sources said, a few hours before the country holds its first free election since president Hosni Mubarak was toppled in February.

The explosion was set off west of El-Arish in Sinai, witnesses said. There was a second consecutive blast, about 100 metres away, sources said.

State news agency MENA said the explosion was in al-Sabeel area. Security forces and fire trucks raced to the scene.

Security sources said the explosions were detonated from a distance and that tracks from two vehicles were found in the area. No group has claimed responsibility for the attack.

The blast marked the ninth time this year that terrorists have bombed the pipeline. The previous attack on the pipeline occurred Friday, when assailants bombed a portion of the pipeline some 60 kilometers from El-Arish. Egyptian officials said that the damage to the pipeline in the Friday blast was small compared to other such explosions this year because that portion of the pipeline has been empty since the last explosion earlier in November.

These constant attacks hurt Jordan at least as much as they hurt Israel. Yet I have not seen any Arab argue that these acts of sabotage must stop because they are hurting fellow Arabs.

Which is yet more proof that Arabs hate Israel more than they love each other.

This is a fundamental problem, and another reason why real peace is simply not possible. Peace can only come about between two rational players, but when one side is so consumed with hate that he doesn't mind hurting his own people just to have a chance of hurting the enemy, we have gone way beyond anything that can be solved with talks and goodwill gestures and negotiations.

November 27, 1947: Arabs plan to divide Palestine

From the Palestine Post, November 27, 1947:

Even on the eve of the partition vote, Arab nations had no interest in an independent Palestine, but rather they wanted to grab whatever pieces they could get.

Transjordan's king had his own ideas. From the same date:

Isn't that sweet?

Report from Egypt - The Muslim Brotherhood's double game

A very good piece by Boaz Bismuth:

“We don’t want to win the Egyptians' votes, we want to win their hearts,” Hassan el-Banah Muhadin, the director of the Muslim Brotherhood party headquarters in the Masar al-Qidma quarter of downtown Cairo, told me this week.

Muhadin is just 21 years old. He completed his studies at Cairo University, where he majored in Spanish. “We are a party with a lot of patience,” he told me during my visit to the organization’s offices earlier this week. “In today’s Egypt, you need to have patience.”

Nonetheless, it seems that the Muslim Brotherhood has – deliberately, it should be noted – lost its patience 10 days before parliamentary elections are due to be held. The elections will begin on Monday and continue until January, with three rounds of voting scheduled (Nov. 28, Dec. 14, and Jan. 5). The tacit cooperation of late between the brotherhood and the army, who were fierce rivals during the Mubarak era, has broken down in the second revolution that erupted last weekend.

The Egypt I visited looks bad. This is not what people had hoped for nine months ago when they ousted Hosni Mubarak.

...Today's Egypt is fractured and fissured. It is an Egypt where nearly everyone is pitted against everyone else. The secular youths, who are the heroes of the revolution, are furious with the army, that same army which they embraced just a few months ago. From their point of view, the army snatched their victory from them. Judging by the speech delivered Tuesday by Field Marshal (the army's highest rank) Mohamed Hussein Tantawi, this army utterly fails to understand Egypt’s citizens.

Alongside the army, there are secular parties who seem to have bitten off more than they can chew, and then there are of course the Muslim Brotherhood, the Salafis, and the rest of “the forces of radical advancement” who were not the first to take to Tahrir Square during the initial days of the revolution, but who are today refusing to just stand on the sidelines. On the contrary. They are now taking initiative just like a Tour de France cyclist who knows exactly when to take advantage of his opponents’ fatigue and sprint past them.

Read the whole thing.

Cairo rally: "One day we'll kill all the Jews"

From YNet:

A Muslim Brotherhood rally in Cairo's most prominent mosque Friday turned into a venomous anti-Israel protest, with attendants vowing to "one day kill all Jews."

Some 5,000 people joined the rally, called to promote the "battle against Jerusalem's Judaization." The event coincided with the anniversary of the United Nations' partition plan in 1947, which called for the establishment of a Jewish state.

Speakers at the event delivered impassioned, hateful speeches against Israel, slamming the "Zionist occupiers" and the "treacherous Jews." Upon leaving the rally, worshippers were given small flags, with Egypt's flag on one side and the Palestinian flag on the other, as well as maps of Jerusalem's Old City detailing where "Zionists are aiming to change Jerusalem's Muslim character."

Propaganda material ahead of Egypt's parliamentary elections was also handed out at the site.

Spiritual leader Dr. Ahmed al-Tayeb charged in his speech that to this day Jews everywhere in the world are seeking to prevent Islamic and Egyptian unity.

"In order to build Egypt, we must be one. Politics is insufficient. Faith in Allah is the basis for everything," he said. "The al-Aqsa Mosque is currently under an offensive by the Jews…we shall not allow the Zionists to Judaize al-Quds (Jerusalem.) We are telling Israel and Europe that we shall not allow even one stone to be moved there."

Muslim Brotherhood spokesmen, as well as Palestinian guest speakers, made explicit calls for Jihad and for liberating the whole of Palestine. Time and again, a Koran quote vowing that "one day we shall kill all the Jews" was uttered at the site. Meanwhile, businessmen in the crowd were urged to invest funds in Jerusalem in order to prevent the acquisition of land and homes by Jews.

Throughout the event, Muslim Brotherhood activists chanted: "Tel Aviv, Tel Aviv, judgment day has come."

Egyptian media reported about the rally but did not mention the anti-semitic chants.

(h/t Yoel)

Unity! Hamas arrests Fatah youth, elections now in doubt

In the wake of the latest photo-op of Hamas/Fatah unity in Cairo, Hamas has arrested four more Fatah youth leaders in Gaza.

Fatah demanded that Hamas immediately release the arrested youths.

One of the major "agreements" made in Cairo was for the PA and Hamas to release all political prisoners of the other party. That's supposed to happen Any Day Now.

Meanwhile, Sheikh Saleh Aruri, member of Hamas' political bureau, said that no elections will be held until every part of the reconciliation agreement is complete beforehand - pretty much the same agreement signed in May and not yet implemented.

Syria, Turkey rhetoric increases

Things are heating up between Turkey and Syria.

Xinhua starts off with:

Syria’s former ally, Turkey, has changed their diplomatic standing and has begun exerting pressure on the government as violence escalates.

For years Turkey has been Syria’s closest neighbour and largest trade partner. But things are changing.

Turkey has suspended energy cooperation with Syria and threatened to halt electricity supply.

The Turkish Prime Minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, has sternly asked Syria’s President Bashar Assad, to step down. And Turkish Foreign Minister, Ahmet Davutoglu, met officially Syria’s rebel leaders.

Ahmet Davutoglu, Turkish FM, said, "Our attitude is very clear. We will take steps alongside the Arab League if Syria does not respond to the proposal."

Syria’s opposition army is in South of Turkey and the Syrian government has increased its troops on the border. Ankara accuses Syria of providing training bases for the the Kurdistan workers Party. Turkish Prime Minister has warned that if the PKK attacksTurkey, they will cross the border to fight.

Al Arabiya:

Foreign ministers from the Arab League and Turkey will meet in Cairo Sunday to discuss how to react to Syria’s failure to respond to an ultimatum for an observer mission, Turkey said Friday.

Anatolia news agency Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu quoted him as saying at Ankara airport that he would be attending, adding that Turkey already had some measures in hand against Damascus.

“We are going to harmonize them with those prepared by the Arab League,” he added.

A deadline set by the Arab League for Syria to sign a deal allowing monitors into the country expired on Friday without any Syrian response.

And, according to Iran's PressTV, Syria is responding this way:

Turkish sources say that Syria has turned its Russian-made SCUD missiles towards Turkey, Press TV reports.

The sources said that the missiles have been deployed in Syria's Kamisili and Ayn Diwar regions, Press TV's Ankara correspondent reported on Saturday.

The two regions are close to the borders of Turkey and Iraq.

This comes as Turkey has recently stepped up its rhetoric against the Syrian government. Reports have also emerged suggesting that Turkey is harboring Syrian armed opposition groups.

Iran is throwing in its own two cents against Turkey:

Iran will target NATO's missile defense installations in Turkey if the U.S. or Israel attacks the Islamic Republic, a senior commander of Iran's powerful Revolutionary Guard said Saturday.

Gen. Amir Ali Hajizadeh, the head of the Guards' aerospace division, said the warning is part of a new defense strategy to counter what he described as an increase in threats from the U.S. and Israel.

And Libya is joining the party:

Syrian rebels held secret talks with Libya's new authorities on Friday, aiming to secure weapons and money for their insurgency against President Bashar al-Assad's regime, The Daily Telegraph has learned.

At the meeting, which was held in Istanbul and included Turkish officials, the Syrians requested "assistance" from the Libyan representatives and were offered arms, and potentially volunteers.

"There is something being planned to send weapons and even Libyan fighters to Syria," said a Libyan source, speaking on condition of anonymity. "There is a military intervention on the way. Within a few weeks you will see."

The Telegraph has also learned that preliminary discussions about arms supplies took place when members of the Turkish-based Syrian National Council [SNC] — the country's main opposition movement — visited Libya earlier this month.

"The Libyans are offering money, training and weapons to the Syrian National Council," added Wisam Tariff, a human rights campaigner with links to the SNC. The disclosure came as rebels raided an air force base outside the city of Homs and killed six pilots, according to a statement by the country's military.

"The [Libyan] council's offer is serious," said Tariff.

It's getting to be a bumpy ride to the Arab Spring Festival.

(h/t Yoel)

The UAE offered $50 million to Palau to vote against Israel at UN

Ynet (print edition, Hebrew) reports:

"The Arabs offered us $50 million under one condition: that we stop our support for Israel and our votes in their favor at the UN. We told them: 'Forget it. We will not vote against Israel for anything in the world' " - So said the president of Palau, one of the Pacific Island states, Johnson Toribiong.

Last night the President concluded a week-long state visit to Israel along with the two other Pacific state leaders: the president of Vanuatu, Iolu Johnson Abil, and the speaker of the parliament of Tonga, Lord Lasike.

The article goes on the say that the UAE offered $50 million over five years to Palau, and another $50 million afterwards, to secure their vote against Israel.

Palau along with Vanuatu and other Pacific microstates have traditionally supported Israel at the UN.

Entire article:

(h/t Dan)

UPDATE: This 2010 UAE initiative might be the same thing. See also here.

WARNING: HASBARA COMING TO FLORIDA TV!

I feel duty bound to inform my readers that a prime example of that dreaded H-word is coming this Tuesday to TV viewers in South Florida.

It will cause anger, angst, and maybe even aneurysms from the "progressive" crowd. This film violates their fiat where every mention of Israel must be combined with "apartheid," "illegal," "illegitimate" or "genocidal."

Called Israel Inside, It was created by JerusalemOnlineU which is already on the radar of anti-Zionist Jews as being way too supportive of the Jewish state.

And the worst part?

It's all true!

It must be especially insulting that the "progressive" crowd has to see this on a network that they have long ago assumed was reflexively anti-Israel. Oooh, that hurts.

Their frothing protests will start right...about...now.

Lawsuit: Male nurse fired for treating Muslim women in Dearborn

From RT.com:

A former medic in Dearborn, Michigan is going after his old employers with a sex discrimination suit. According to John Benitez Jr, he lost his job with the city’s Department of Health because he provided medical care to Muslim patients.

Benitez, 63, has spent half his life as a registered nurse. In September 2010, he joined the ranks of Dearborn’s Health Department to assist patients in one of the largest Muslim communities in America. Even with a booming population of immigrants practicing Islam, the nurse says that his supervisor told him that they were off limits.

Benitez says that his former employer lectured him against providing care to female Muslim patients that sought help, and instead asked him to send them to her, a Muslim, for treatment. According to the suit recently filed, the Muslim supervisor told Benitez that “conservative” Muslims, specifically women garbed in hijab head scarves, would not want to be touched by a male nurse. Benitez followed the instruction until November 17, when according to the legal filing, a doctor questioned him "about the cumbersome and unusual practice of taking women wearing a head scarf to the nursing supervisor for care.” As a trained, licensed medical professional — and employee of the city — Benitez should have been providing care to anyone in need. After the doctor confronted him about it in November and said the supervisor’s instructions were “improper,” Benitez went back to treating everyone that came in.

Only two weeks later, Benitez was fired.

According to the legal papers, the nurse was explicitly told that the termination was "not because of any performance problem, but was instead carried out because the clinic's conservative male Muslim clientele did not want a male treating female patients." More than 30 years after entering the practice — a tenure which included a stint asVietnam war Army medic — the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission gave Benitez the go ahead to sue last month and on Wednesday he filed the discrimination suit in Detroit U.S. District Court.

City officials have not offered any comments to the media just yet, though Benitez’ attorney says that their client is seeking compensatory and punitive damages, as well as his job reinstated and lost wages and benefits.

I would have no problem if the patients requested a woman nurse in non-life threatening situations, but this is simply a bigoted woman who is trying to push her own interpretation of Islamic law in a public heath facility.

(h/t Callie)

Anti-Zionist Christian ethicists never responded

I noted over a week ago about a pair of Christian ethicists who claimed that Genesis 15 and 17, both used as proof-texts by Christian Zionists that Jews were promised the Land of Israel (with nebulous borders), in fact were referring to all children of Abraham. I brought a number of texts besides those that showed otherwise, and wondered why they looked at those texts in a vacuum.

It turns out I violated my own rule for always looking at the source if possible, because it is clear that they cherry-picked their quotes, and other quotes in the same chapters show their interpretation is wrong.

They note:

[T]he promise looks very different if we take seriously all of the offspring of Abraham. Genesis 15:4-5 has God taking Abram outside and telling him that his descendants will be as numerous as the stars of the heavens. Genesis 17:4, probably the pivotal text, has God saying to Abraham: “This is my covenant with you: You shall be the ancestor of a multitude of nations.” Many nations, a multitude of nations; many offspring, many kings—read Genesis 17 again and see the plural nouns here.

Close readers of Scripture will know that in fact Abraham did become the father of many nations. With Sarah he became the father of Isaac and the ancestor of all in his line, via Jacob and Esau. With Hagar he became the father of Ishmael and all in his line. And with the long-forgotten Keturah (Gen. 25:1) he became the father of Zimran, Jokshan, Medan, Midian, Ishbak, and Shuah. The Old Testament clearly positions Abraham as the father/ancestor of not only the Jewish people but of a vast number of other peoples, all scattered through the territories promised in Genesis 15. Abraham becomes the father of dozens of peoples, exactly as the Bible says! It is certainly true that the Old Testament primarily tells the story of the line of Isaac and therefore of what became the Jewish people, but that cannot cancel the significance of the promises to Abraham and the many peoples credited to him in Genesis.

But Genesis 15 says:

And He said unto Abram: 'Know of a surety that thy seed shall be a stranger in a land that is not theirs, and shall serve them; and they shall afflict them four hundred years; and also that nation, whom they shall serve, will I judge; and afterward shall they come out with great substance. ...And in the fourth generation they shall come back hither; for the iniquity of the Amorite is not yet full.'

This is an obvious reference to the children of Israel in Egypt, using the same phrase "thy seed" that the authors refer to.

Likewise, Genesis 17 proves that the covenant goes only to Isaac, not Ishmael:

And God said: 'Nay, but Sarah thy wife shall bear thee a son; and thou shalt call his name Isaac; and I will establish My covenant with him for an everlasting covenant for his seed after him. And as for Ishmael, I have heard thee; behold, I have blessed him, and will make him fruitful, and will multiply him exceedingly; twelve princes shall he beget, and I will make him a great nation. But My covenant will I establish with Isaac, whom Sarah shall bear unto thee at this set time in the next year.'

Later, Isaac makes it clear that the covenant is passing only to Jacob, not Esau (Gen 28, today's Torah reading:)

And God Almighty bless thee, and make thee fruitful, and multiply thee, that thou mayest be a congregation of peoples; and give thee the blessing of Abraham, to thee, and to thy seed with thee; that thou mayest inherit the land of thy sojournings, which God gave unto Abraham.'

I brought most of these to their attention in their blog, after their follow-up post where they said how "We are sincere in raising these biblical questions and hoping for a sincere answer. We are deeply serious about biblical authority."

But they never responded, not even on their own blog.

Now, I do not know if Christian Zionists are advocating that Israel conquer all land between the Nile and Euphrates; as the authors seem to imply. The boundaries of the land God is promising the Israelites seems to change in different chapters and I imagine that this is an issue that needs to be grappled with from a Christian perspective. But to facilely declare that God must have been talking about Arabs and dismiss everything else in those same chapters seems more an exercise in wishful thinking than in serious Biblical interpretation. I also do not believe that Israeli policy is made in response to Christian Zionist demands.

I may be completely wrong, as I am not a Christian and maybe there is a glaringly obvious error I am making in the literal interpretation of these verses. But if not, then based on their argument and the lack of adequate answers, the state of Christian Biblical scholarship has gone way downhill since the 19th century.

Stupid Arab rumor of the day: Mossad threatened to kill Abbas

Palestine Press Agency quotes Egypt's Moheet newspaper as saying that Arab League sources allege that Mahmoud Abbas received death threats from the Mossad - unless he scuttles his unity agreement with Hamas.

Sure. Spy agencies always send threats to their intended targets, like 1920's era mobsters.

Then again, in a world where even Israeli media give credibility to bizarre conspiracy theories floated by a pathetic anti-Israel blogger in Seattle who claims to have super-secret Mossad sources, maybe I shouldn't be so hard on Moheet.

Islamists win Morocco elections

From Al Arabiya:

The Moroccan government confirmed Saturday that the Islamist-rooted Justice and Development Party (PJD) had won biggest share of seats in parliament.

The party captured 80 seats in the 395-seat assembly, the most of any party, in Friday's polls according to provisional results, Interior Minister Taib Cherkaoui told a news conference.

A party in Morocco's ruling coalition recognized the win PJD’s win in the parliamentary elections.

“I congratulate the PJD for this win and I would like to say as well that Morocco won in these legislative elections,” sports and youth minister Moncef Belkhayat and a leader of the National Rally of Independents party told AFP.

The PJD, supported largely by Morocco’s poor, would be the second moderate Islamist party to lead a North African government since the start of the region’s Arab Spring uprisings, following Tunisia.

But the party, which hopes to push Islamic finance but vows to steer clear of imposing a strict moral code on society, will have to join forces with others to form a government.

The king revived a reform process this year hoping to sap the momentum out of a protest movement and avoid the violence-ridden revolts in Tunisia, Libya, Egypt, Yemen and Syria.

He has handed over more powers to the government, although he retains the final say on the economy, security and religion.

The king will pick the next prime minister from the party that wins the biggest number of seats. But whichever party or bloc comes first is unlikely to be able to form a government on its own.

PJD has said it aims to obtain a majority by joining forces with three parties in the current governing coalition, including the left-wing Socialist Union of Popular Forces (USFP) and the nationalist Istiqlal of Prime Minister Abbas al-Fassi.

Well, that takes care of most of North Africa.

Ofir Gendelman is the Israeli Prime Minister's spokesperson to the Arab media. He was interviewed by pan-Arab daily Asharq al-Awsat. It mentions that he is 40 years old and learned Arabic in Haifa, starting in primary school and going on through college.

Excerpts:

* Why do you enjoy your job?

- Communicating with the Arab world is critical for me... I serve my country and my people, and serve the cause of peace.

* How?

- I do not limit myself to dealing with the Arab world through traditional media, but also with forums and social networks as well. I try to probe the depth of Arab societies, by giving a true picture of Israel not one that is superficial. I want to [combat] the distortions and lies that are published about us.

* Give us an example of that.

- Arabs in general put the Israeli and in one of three categories: soldier, settler, or religious. As you know, and I'm neither of them. I am not religious and I'm not a settler and I'm not a soldier, and I'm trying to say is that Israel is a state where there is a plurality of other characters, and I try to give a true picture of it.

* How do you find in yourself the ability to defend the policy of Netanyahu. This man is a hate figure among the Arabs in the world; from the Atlantic Ocean to the Gulf. He is seen only negatively.

- I think that the perception in the Arab world of our Prime Minister Netanyahu is the wrong impression. Wrong and very distorted. He actually wants to make peace with the Palestinians and other Arabs. And his position is constantly moving towards peace, [he has] accepted the principle of two states for two peoples.

* It is natural to defend him, you are his spokesperson. But this talk does not convince any Arabs. They only understand the results. Here we are approaching three years of his reign he did not further the peace process at all. On the contrary, the settlement and Judaization [has accelerated].

- I served under the three Israeli governments, led by Ariel Sharon and Ehud Olmert and Benjamin Netanyahu, and I bear witness that there are no fundamental differences among them.

* Do you want to tell me that Netanyahu, who does not move a muscle, is like Olmert, [who offered] the withdrawal of the majority of the West Bank and the establishment of a Palestinian state with its capital Jerusalem?

- Netanyahu focuses more on security issues, terrorism and the Iranian threat, because these are the fundamental concerns of Israeli society.

* And when you say this to the Arabs in the media or in social networks, how do they react?

- Responses are varied, there are supporters and opponents and [also] attacks and insults.

* In general, do you get more negative responses than positive or vice versa?

- The majority of responses are negative. But this is due to the accumulation of hostility and influence of the anti-Israel propaganda for years. There are also positive responses from people who understand our positions or parts of them. It is an important beginning.

Q: What is the volume of interest in the Arab world to hear your positions or the positions of Netanyahu?

- In the Arab media, it is always there. In cases of hot events, I've conducted many interviews, as many as 15.; during the Shalit deal I conducted interviews with 22 media outlets. As for the Facebook, the page opened by Prime Minister Netanyahuhas almost 6000 people from the Arab world. In Twitter there are 36 thousand.. In my page there are about 3,200 people.

* From the Arab countries?

- The majority are from Egypt, but there are people who communicated with us throughout the Arab world, including Syria, Yemen and the Gulf States and all of the Maghreb.

* Where do the insults come from, in particular?

- From Egypt. I have read insults and curses I have not heard of before, so I told them thanks, I have learned new words in colloquial Egyptian dialect.

Get Pinkwashed! "Palestinian Queer Parties" are held in - Tel Aviv!

I have received a lot of feedback about my essay on the sheer hate that Sarah Schulman exhibited in the New York Times this week, where she downplayed Israel's gay rights achievements as mere "pinkwashing" of Israeli crimes, which she believes is the real reason Israelis are more accepting of gays than their neighbors.

One correspondent, Scott Piro, wrote another excellent response to her essay on Ray Cook's blog. He points out that one of the Palestinian Arab gay groups that Schulman extols, AlQaws, has held its parties in Tel Aviv.

Sure enough, a Google search of "AlQaws Palestinian Queer Party" finds that this is a bi-monthly event, and has been held for the past year at the Comfort 13 club in Tel Aviv. The next event is on December 2:

And they had the same party, at the same venue, in April, June , July and October.

In fact, alQaws' headquarters is in Jerusalem, on the western side of the Green Line.

Even so, they also argue against so-called "pinkwashing" and support Sarah Schulman's organization, "Queers Against Israeli Apartheid. "

The hypocrisy is stunning. They are against events such as "Out in Israel," a celebration of Israeli LGBT culture in San Francisco last year, because they dislike the politicization of their cause in ways that make Israel look good. But QuAIA's entire reason for existing is as a politicization of their cause to demonize Israel! Their hate trumps any desire they have for gays to be treated equally worldwide.

Even their arguments are silly. This is the pinnacle of their logic, used by Schulman as well as at the alQaws site:

It doesn’t matter what the sexual orientation of the Soldier at a checkpoint is, whether he can serve openly or not....The apartheid wall was not created to keep Palestinian homophobes out of Gay Israel, and there is no magic door for gay Palestinians to pass through.

In other words, Israelis, as opposed to Palestinian Arabs, have a concept of equal rights. Terrorists are treated the same whether they are straight or gay, and so are soldiers.

Would Al Qaws prefer that such a discriminatory magic door exists? Are they saying that they should be treated better by Israel than their straight neighbors?

Apparently, they want to be treated as special, to use their cause specifically to demonize Israel. (Al Qaws at least tries to work to fix Palestinian Arab society, QuAIA has no interest in that.)

In a perfectly equal society, gays would not be considered more or less special than any group of people, like stamp collectors or fans of Twilight. If people created an organization called, for example, Quilters Against Israeli Apartheid, it would be blatantly obvious that the group is not pro-quilter but simply haters of Israel. And that is what QuAIA is, as they hijack the very real issues that gays face and try (very unconvincingly) to shoehorn them into their own loathing of the Jewish State.

(By the way, the Goldstone Report used the exact same bizarre logic in accusing Israel of violating the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women during Cast Lead - as if Israel was specifically targeting and discriminating against Gaza's women! When one wants to attack Israel, apparently no argument is too crazy.)

Latest Latma

Nice Dylan/Arab Spring parody.

Impressive Jerusalem flash mob dance

More details on the event here.

(h/t CiFWatch)

Med-washing: Doctors worldwide, including Muslims, study for year in Israel

From the Rambam Medical Center, not sure what date:

Last month, Rambam’s Spencer Auditorium resembled the UN in New York. Fifteen doctors and scientists from throughout the world – graduates and participants in the hospital’s International Fellowships and Training Program – came together, and were joined by Rambam department directors and administrators.

A Nablus doctor at Rambam

Operating for four years, this program has drawn some 20 doctors from different countries, who have come to reap Rambam’s experience in orthopedics, pediatrics, oncology, neuro-surgery, surgery, anesthesiology, plastic surgery, gynecology and other areas. Participants stay at Rambam for roughly a year.

According to Dr. Zohar Keidar, deputy director of the Dept. of Nuclear Medicine and PET/CT, and Chairman of the International Fellowship Committee, Rambam’s knowhow and experience will be disseminated by these doctors. “Despite the fact that they come from different cultures, religions and backgrounds and work in different departments, they are here for one reason: the desire to be better physicians,” he says. “Rambam helps them acquire knowledge, which they apply in their home countries.”

These activities also serve diplomatic purposes. After a year-long stay at Rambam, the doctors know Israel, far more than the average person who derives information from foreign news networks. “Project participants act as ambassadors of Israel,” says Dr. Keidar.

Among those who take part are citizens from neighboring areas: from Hebron, Nablus and Jenin, as well as from Cyprus and Jordan. Others come from the European countries of Moldova, Bulgaria and Italy, from Ghana in Africa and from the Asian nations Vietnam and Nepal.

Arabic media is quoting the Israeli MFA site saying that there have been 28 doctors in the program so far, including Muslims from Indonesia. Israel gave the doctors tours of Yad Vashem and other places. They don't sound too happy about it.

In the wake of the "pinkwashing" charge, this must be a classic case of med-washing.

Look out also for examples of sand-washing, classical-music-washing, history-washing, religion-washing and bikini-washing as Israel keeps coming up with its evil schemes to distract the world from its single-minded determination of ethnically cleansing Arabs from the Middle East.

In fact, I think the Rambam hospital was built specifically to institute this one program just to act as a hasbara mouthpiece and to embarrass Muslims worldwide.

Those Zionist Jews stop at nothing to make themselves look human, and we need clear thinking progressives - Mearsheimer's "righteous Jews" - to inform the world of the truth that they are nothing of the kind.