Elder Of Ziyon - Israel News

Thursday, October 04, 2012

Thursday links

From Ian:

Anti-Israel, Pro-Hamas Muslim Leader Is US Delegate to Warsaw Human Rights Conference

"For this administration to appoint to an august human rights organization Salam Al-Marayati, who has openly supported Hizbollah, claimed that the FBI has illegally incited Muslims on terrorism charges because of FBI sanctioned policies of “racial profiling,” has defended as innocent the most notorious members of Hamas who were found guilty of laundering millions of dollars to a terrorist group, and someone who has complained of ‘having the Holocaust shoved down [his] throat,’ is an outrage."

NY State Sen. Breaks Silence About Why He Walked Off Stage at Muslim Day Parade: ‘Attack on Our Country’

"I was deeply offended by the various remarks that were made during the on stage presentation and felt they were an attack on our country as well as the State of Israel and were anti-Semitic in nature and as a result I left the stage in protest."

Who Is(n’t) a Refugee?

"Far more remarkable than millions of invented Palestinian refugees receiving UNRWA largesse is the even larger number of Jewish refugees from Arab states who, along with their children, have rejected perpetual dependence and special pleading to build fulfilling lives elsewhere. Indeed, a Committee of Baghdadi Jews in Ramat Gan (Israel) opposes the effort to equate Jewish and Arab refugees as a politically driven effort to offset Palestinian claims, rather than a genuine attempt to rectify individual losses."

Kangaroo Court and Clown Show rolled into one - the Russell Tribunal on Palestine stumbles into New York this weekend

“A tribunal, as defined by the meaning of the word, is a court with the authority to render decisions of justice. So among the other abuses perpetrated by the Russell Tribunal on Palestine is a debasement of the English language by the upcoming gathering this weekend of prejudiced fanatics and buffoons who comprise it.” See also: NGO Monitor backgrounder

The Age and Human Rights in Gaza

"For perhaps the first time in recent history, and at least for the first time since Ruth Pollard took the reigns as Middle East correspondent at the Age, a story has run which portrays Hamas in a negative light…the last time this happened was most likely back in 2008, a good four years ago…writes Emily Gian."
“One cause that the Age has really relished in trumpeting over the past few years is the Free Gaza Movement, who, among other things, have been behind the flotillas to “break the blockade” of Gaza. If you recall, correspondent Paul McGeough even wrote a six-page spread back in 2010 which featured in the Good Weekend magazine entitled ‘Project Gaza’, focussing on six activists involved in the movement."
Back then, McGeough wrote about the “motley crew of cash strapped activists” that united to form the Free Gaza Movement. One of those people was the Free Gaza Movement co-founded and Board Secretary Greta Berlin, who has now found herself in quite the pickle after posting an extremely anti-Semitic video on the Free Gaza Movement’s twitter page.”

Sharp increase in terrorist acts in West Bank in September
Majority of the attacks involve Molotov cocktails, Shin Bet report shows

Hamas gate-crashes press conference where it is accused of torture

"Representatives of Gaza's Islamist Hamas government turned up at a Human Rights Watch press conference in Gaza on Wednesday to dispute a recent report compiled by the international rights group accusing Hamas of torture and other abuses of justice The rights group says that Hamas security forces had committed rampant abuses against Palestinian prisoners"

U.N. atomic agency says no date set for fresh Iran talks

Hezbollah commander killed while on 'jihad duties' in Syria

Bypassing Israel, French capital endorses unprecedented agreement with ‘East Jerusalem’
Israel’s Foreign Ministry says the agreement reflects a “make-believe world”

"The agreement was initiated in early 2011 by Green Party councilmen Jacques Picard and Michel Bock, who also serves as chairman of the international and European action committee in the regional council of Île-de-France.”

Venezuela and Its Fleeing Jewish Population
What elections mean for the remnants of the Jewish community

The Campaign Against Scandinavian Jewry

Troubling news from Sweden, Denmark, and Finland
While the tone of the language may sound different when uttered from a podium instead of graffitied on a wall or synagogue, the message is the same. And it’s not good.

Also, an interesting new hasbara/information initiative: Ask Herzl

Some of my materials are there.

Islamic Jihad holds terror celebration

Today, Islamic Jihad celebrated its 25th anniversary, and thousands attended the celebration in Gaza.

The head of its armed terrorist wing said that this rally was a "referendum" on "resistance."

The head of Islamic Jihad itself, Ramadan Shallah, gave a speech from a video screen, the same way that Hezbollah's leader Nasrallah does, afraid that a drone might just pick him off.

His speech emphasized that their goal is the armed takeover of all of "Palestine". He also railed against Oslo, Jews on the Temple Mount, the PLO, the Mohammed video, and the fact that the issue of Palestinian Arab nationalism has dropped off the agendas of most Arab countries.

Some photos:

"Jihad. Jihad. Rah. Rah. Rah. Can I watch cartoons now?"

Special guest star, Mahmoud Zahar, just to make sure everyone knows that Hamas agrees with Islamic Jihad

Are you allowed to grope young boys in public in Gaza?

The crowd was not particularly large, actually.

Fun for the whole family!

Grandma wants a piece of that delicious jihad flavor!

By the way, the EXIF information for these images show that they were shot (not very professionally) with a Canon EOS 7D camera, which costs upwards of $2000 with proper lenses. Islamic Jihad and their "media war" division can get cash when they want to.

(h/t Challah)

A "cultural intifada" to destroy the Jewish state

The latest stunt to try to blame all of Palestinian Arab woes on Israel, called the "Freedom Bus," flew completely under the radar.

From Bikya Masr:

On Monday, the Freedom Bus marked the final stop of its tour across the Israeli-occupied West Bank by hosting a concert in Bet Sahour.

Over a hundred people came to Bet Sahour’s old city to watch Palestinian performers such as the rap group DAM, Haifa-based reggae band Ministry of Dub-key, and Toot Ard, a Syrian band from the occupied Golan Heights.

It sounds like there were more people in the bands and their crews than there were in the audience.
Outside of this article, there seems to have been no media attention given to yet another stunt designed to ensure that Palestinian Arabs do nothing to better their situation and put all of theior efforts into blame, blame and more blame. The "Freedom Bus" website even calls its purpose to wage a "cultural intifada." (And it has a quote from Judith Butler supporting the infantilization of the cause.)

972mag, abandoning what little pretense it had of being a news site, simply copied a press release from the Freedom Bus' spokesperson instead of bothering to actually report on what appeared to be a major fail. The "pro-Palestinian" crowd simply hasn't figured out that the world is sick of their whining and refusal to take even a scintilla of responsibility for their lives.

But let one of the featured bands talk about their view of how the Middle East should look:

Palestine Street, a local rap group from the nearby Dheisheh refugee camp in Bethlehem, brought the crowd to their feet during their performance, dedicating their closing song to Palestinian refugees living in exile. “Palestine will be free, from the Jordan River to the sea,” they shouted at the end of their set, arousing immense applause from the crowd.

As long as they choose to deny the reality of Israel, there will be Freedom Bus-like gimmicks for another 65 years, and beyond.

Continued Palestinian Arab fantasies, fed by stunts like this, are the biggest impediment to peace. Which means that this "intifada" will ultimately be as counterproductive for the daily lives of average Arabs in the territories as the last two were.

Secularist Tunisian president: Islamist rise a "poisoned gift" to Arabs

From Reuters:

Islamist militants are shifting their focus from southwest Asia to Arab North Africa and stepping up violence in the region, Tunisian President Moncef Marzouki said in an interview published on Tuesday.

Moderate Islamists who were harshly suppressed by secular Arab dictators have gained political power or prominence following popular uprisings in Tunisia, Libya and Egypt.

But armed, militant Islamist groups, including the North African wing of al Qaeda, have also benefited from lapses in internal security across the region wrought by the often chaotic transition to more democratic government.

Marzouki told pan-Arab daily al Hayat that some of Tunisia's hardline Salafists had links to al Qaeda and that North African countries would work before the end of the year to form a united front against the threat of rising Islamist militancy.

"The centre of the terrorist movement is moving now from Afghanistan and Pakistan to the Arab Maghreb region ... and the great danger is at our doors," Marzouki said.

He said around 3,000 Salafists in Tunisia were estimated to be potentially dangerous and described them as a "cancer" in the country, the first in the Arab world to bring down dictatorship in a wave of popular uprisings.

Marzouki, a secularist in office under a power-sharing deal with the moderate Islamist Ennahda party after it won a free election a year ago, said talks with such militants were futile and the threat they posed must be addressed with legal measures.

"(Militants) are mainly present in Libya and Algeria, and especially in the south," Marzouki said, referring to the remote and thinly populated desert expanses of the Maghreb where policing is weaker and there has been traditional tribal resistance to central authority.

"There is a security problem now threatening the entire Arab Maghreb region ... All our southern borders are threatened with this problem now. There has to be a unified response from all the countries."

The money quote from the Al Hayat interview, which neither Reuters nor AFP published, was this:

The rise of Islamist parties in the "Arab Spring" countries are a "poisoned gift," he said, pointing out that the Arab peoples had big ambitions beyond the current reality.

While the relatively moderate Ennahda party in Tunisia was forced to share power with Marzouk's secularist party, in Egypt the Muslim Brotherhood and the Salafists achieved an overwhelming majority in the parliamentary elections. So the Salafists that he is warning against in the Maghreb as being potential terrorists are the same ones who are now hugely influential in the Arab world's most populous nation, and helping write the constitution there.

Too perfect:

Organizers of the Bethlehem Walk said Tuesday they have decided to cancel the event following strong protests and threats from Palestinian activists, who objected to the participation of Israelis.

The event was supposed to take place on October 5 in Bethlehem.

Israelis, Palestinians and members of other nations and religions from around the world were supposed to walk quietly in Bethlehem to promote “change and acknowledge basic common grounds and sow the seeds of understanding and acceptance.”

The organizers said in their invitation that “walking in mindfulness is a quiet walk full of respect for the here and now. It is an experience that helps us to develop calm, balance and confidence when faced with the challenges of reality.”

However, the planned event drew strong condemnations from Palestinian youth activists in Bethlehem, who expressed outrage over the participation of Israelis.

The activists called for cancelling the event under the pretext that it was a form of “normalization” with Israel. They also threatened to prevent Israelis from “desecrating our holy city and sites.”

The organizers said they decided to cancel the event “out of respect for the feeling of all those who were outraged by the march.”

One of the Palestinian organizers, who asked not to be identified, said his group “had no intention to spark violence and outrage.”

Just as a thought experiment, would the "activists" have objected if the Israelis who walked were Muslims or Christians?

Hmmm.

Here is the organizers' response:

"We, the organizers of the walk, deeply honor and hear clearly the responses of all of you who have been challenged by the walk. Our purpose is not to perpetuate anger nor violence, and not to undermine any view, but to seek to deeply listen to all voices and hear their concerns and needs with the hope of reaching a common ground that makes all of us stand strong in facing and ending all forms of oppression and violence and create a future where true peace, justice, and equality is lived and honored for all and by all.

Therefore, honoring the concerns of each and everyone of you, the walk will not take place at this time as originally planned. We acknowledge the disappointment of our supporters and affirm our faith in the possibility of peace in our troubled land, and our determination to persevere together to that end. We ask you to remain in contact with us, spread the word, and join us in this vision no matter where you are and no matter how you do it."

See how tolerant they are? They "honor" even the bigots among them!

They are creating an alternate event for tomorrow:

As we move a step forward in creating a new consciousness for real peace, acknowledging the deep work needed by all of us, Israelis are invited to join together on Friday, October 5, for mindful walking and listening circles, at the Spiritual Center in Neve-Shalom/Wahat al-Salam. We will start at 1000 and end at 1400. Please bring a hat, drink and food.

It appears that the only place that peace activists can actually demonstrate tolerance is in that hateful apartheid state of Israel, not in beautiful liberal "Palestine."

(h/t Ian)

Israel Loves America (Posters)

There are lots of polls about how Americans love Israel, but the other side of the story isn't told so often. The fact is, though, that Israel and Israelis love America.

And the contrast with the other countries in the region could not be starker.

Or, if you want it in more graphical message:

Kuwaiti politician accuses Muslim Brotherhood of being Jewish!

Arabic media, including Akhbarak and Egypt's El Barad, are reporting that Safa Al-Hashem, activist and political candidate for the Kuwaiti parliament, has launched a sharp attack on the Muslim Brotherhood.

Funny, he doesn't look Jewish

He said the Brotherhood was like poison that has spread in the body of the Arab world under the auspices of America.

Al-Hashem told Al-Watan-Kuwait that the Brotherhood has a plan to deploy this poison in the Gulf, and he claims that Hassan al-Banna, founder of the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt, was really a Moroccan immigrant of Jewish descent! According to al-Hashem, al-Banna really meant the "Jewish brotherhood" when he founded the organization.

Dr. Mohamed Badie, leader of the Brotherhood, suggested that al-Hashem read history instead of hiding behind "the guise of religion."

The bottom line is that both the Islamists and the anti-Islamists in the Arab world can be counted on to be anti-semitic. Not only that, but the fact that someone can make such an accusation in order to defame a person or group proves that they know that the entire Arab world is anti-semitic as well - otherwise, it wouldn't be an insult!

Iran accuses Turkey's IHH of arming terrorists!

Pretzel irony from Iran's FARS "news" agency:

A Turkish NGO known as IHH which is operating in full coordination with Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu and Saudi Wahhabi groups is sending heavy weaponry to Syrian rebels under the guise of humanitarian relief aid.

IHH was established in Istanbul in 1991 by advocates of Turkey's Welfare Party founded by former Turkish Prime Minister Necmettin Erbakan. It played a positive role in supporting Bosnian Muslims during the Bosnia War (1992-1995).

Throughout coming years, IHH distanced itself from Turkey's Welfare and Felicity Parties. After the outbreak of unrests in Syria in March 2011 it actively took part in helping the Syrian opposition groups.

IHH was supposed to provide humanitarian relief in case of outbreak of war, earthquake, hunger or conflict. Current president of the IHH is Fehmi Bulent Yildirim, but his deputy Osman Atalay is practically in charge of IHH's affairs.

Atalay acts in full coordination with Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, Salafis and Wahhabis, and is engaged in humanitarian relief operations on the surface.

So does this mean that Iran now agrees with Israel that IHH - whose members attacked IDF soldiers on the Mavi Marmara - is a terrorist organization masquerading as a humanitarian NGO?

This Syria situation is certainly twisting alliances up in the Muslim world.

(h/t Aaron G)

Debate open thread, with competing attack videos

Since no one would read anything I would post during the debate anyway, here's an open thread.

With competing attack commercials from each party's Jewish arm.

From the Republican Jewish Coalition, "Perilous Times":

From the (Democrat) Jewish Council for Education and Research, "Wake the F--k Up:"

Four interesting stories in Arab media today

#1: Holocaust denial in Al Watan Voice:

The author claims that Jews originally claimed to have lost 40 million people in the Holocaust, more than there were in Europe; then they revised that downward to 24 million before finally settling on six million, a number that he claims Jewish historians know is a lie.

Judaism is based on deceit and fraud and the desire to generate sympathy of the world, and then to easily blackmail the world. To this day continue blackmail Germany under the pretext of Nazism and the Holocaust. Note that there is an awakening German movement begun to emerge to get rid of this yoke.

#2: Yemeni human rights leaders detained for speaking to Jews, at Al Masdar:

On Wednesday, Yemeni intelligence services detained a team consisting of four people who visited the Yemeni Jews' homes east of the capital Sanaa.

They were taken into custody on the grounds that their entry into the homes of the Jews were contrary to [the law.]

The Sawa Organization Against Discrimination they visited the Jews in their region in order to consult with them, to engage in a comprehensive national dialogue, which will bring together the political forces and factions in all their diversity.

The soldiers said visiting Jews is a violation. The human rights team is still being held at the time of writing (5:30 PM).

#3: Israelis fake polls showing they are happy, at Al Bayan (UAE)

An Israel Hayom poll (actually, an Israeli Democracy Institute survey) showed that Israelis are optimistic about the future and proud to live in Israel. The author, noting Israel's political isolation in the world and almost universal army service, flatly claims that this poll is a lie meant to make the Jews feel better about themselves.

#4: Hasbara sites in Arabic are meant to fool young Arabs into thinking Israel is less than totally evil, at Al Ahram (Egypt):

This article is very upset over the many Israeli Arabic sites that say that Israel is a nice place.

Facebook is the easiest way for Zionists to freely communicate with millions of young Arabs about normalization and lies bypassing the language barrier....A large number of pages on Facebook say that their goal is to be a source of information about the state of Israel and what is happening there different from what the Arab satellite stations show. They are keen to embellish the face of the Zionist entity and to highlight the human face that is tolerant and advanced scientifically and economically ...These pages aimed at millions of Arab people all highlight the good side of Israel, for example, that they teach Arabic in Israel to 70 thousand Jews in one year of in order to achieve integration and equality between Jews and Arabs...

Stories that upset this author include one about an 8 year old Jewish girl who won a bronze medal at a European chess championship, and about an Arab chemistry and biology specialist who is a potential future Nobel laureate, and the fact that the Jewish state allowed 250,000 Muslims to worship in the AlAqsa mosque during Ramadan.

The Mona Eltahawy story everyone is missing

I have mostly stayed away from the silly story of two gigantic egos clashing underneath the streets of New York City, as Egyptian-American journalist Mona Eltahawy announced to the world her plans to vandalize a pro-Israel subway poster put up by blogger Pam Geller. Apparently Eltahawy believed that a poster that was clearly against jihadists was insulting to every Arab worldwide, which tells you a little about her mindset.

Perhaps the best commentary on the kerfuffle was written by Petra Marquardt-Bigman in two separate articles. Read them both.

There is one aspect of the story that no one seems to be talking about, though.

Eltahawy is a reporter. And she has done some important work in exposing the sickening sexism in the Arab world (even exposing people who she might call "savage.")

But journalists are not supposed to become stories. Moreover, they should never actively seek to become stories. Doing a stunt like Eltahawy did is anathema to real journalists Any journalist that pulls a publicity stunt like Mona did should be branded as utterly unable to maintain even a pretense of objectivity.

In any sane world, Eltahawy's journalism career should be over.

The question is - is it?

Or are adamantly anti-Israel positions consistent with the types of media Eltahawy usually writes for?

Midweek Links

From Ian:

The Neurotic Middle East
The world tacitly exempts the Middle East from the rules of civilized behavior.

“The world obsesses over Israel and the Palestinians because of the neurotic Middle East. The issue is not really the principle of a divided capital — or Nicosia would be daily news. Nor is the concern over refugees per se, since well over 500,000 Jews were religiously cleansed from the major Arab capitals following the 1948 and 1967 wars. No one cares where they went or how they have fared in the decades since. Is the global worry really over occupied territories? Hardly. Lately it seems that every desolate island between China and Japan is equally contested. Are there special envoys to the Falklands, and do the islanders receive international aid? Will there be a U.N. session devoted to the Kuril Islands? Does Gdansk/Danzig merit summits? We are told ad nauseam that the Arab minority in Israel suffers — would that the ignored Coptic minority in Egypt had similar protections and freedoms.”

A late-blooming Arab Spring in Jordan?

“Now, with large demonstrations planned for Friday in Amman – which organizers say will be the biggest the Hashemite Kingdom has seen in years – some question how long Jordan can remain immune from the demands for change that have swept through the region, sparking uprisings and unseating dictatorships.”

UK media watchdog rules: Tel Aviv is not the capital
Monday’s decision by oversight committee decides debate over Guardian apology for ‘wrongly’ giving Jerusalem the title

“The ruling set a precedent on British coverage of Israel, effectively barring all British publications from referring to Tel Aviv as Israel’s capital,” Honest Reporting, the British pro-Israel media watchdog group behind the complaint to the PCC, declared in a statement released Tuesday.
“Fatuous claims over the status of Tel Aviv as a means to delegitimize Jerusalem as Israel’s rightful capital will no longer be acceptable,” said the group’s CEO, Joe Hyams.

British politician slams ex-London mayor for ‘rich Jews’ quote

"Douglas Alexander, a former British government minister, has criticized former London mayor Ken Livingstone for allegedly saying Jews won’t vote for Britain’s Labor Party because they are rich."

Criticizing Islam taboo in academia: ex-Yale expert says

"Academics who study Islamic antisemitism are risking career advancement and younger scholars are shying away from the subject as a result, said Montreal native Charles A. Small, who headed a Yale University program in antisemitism until it was shut down last year amid controversy. "

PMW: The PA’s Jerusalem libel continues
Organizations and officials claim Israel plans to destroy Al-Aqsa Mosque

"The Palestinian Authority continues to deny Jerusalem's Jewish history and the existence of the Temple, referring to the "alleged Temple." In addition, the PA continues to promote its Jerusalem libel"

IDF Blog: Israel Defense Forces: September 2012

September started off on a happy occasion — the celebration of Rosh Hashana, the Jewish new year — but turned tragic due to the death of Cpl. Netanel Yahalomi, who was killed while defending against a terror attack on the southern border. Here’s what the IDF faced this month.

Navy prepares to intercept Gaza activist ship

International rights group says Hamas' security forces in Gaza are committing severe abuses

Human Rights Watch says Hamas' security forces in Gaza are committing severe abuses, including torture of detainees, arrests without warrants, forced confessions, unfair trials and mock executions.

MP touts defeat of SA settlement product labelling

South African MP Meshoe hails victory in blocking bill requiring labeling of WB goods as from "occupied Palestinian territory."
South African parliamentarians blocked Trade and Industry Minister Rob Davies’s bill requiring settlement products to be labeled as originating from “occupied Palestinian territory,” marking a “great victory,” South African MP Reverend Kenneth Meshoe said in Jerusalem Tuesday.

'To annihilate Israel we need 24 hours, an excuse'

Khamenei's Qods Force representative claims Israel could not win "war of attrition" and is desperate, "close to annihilation."

Iranian police clash with protesters over currency plunge

As the rial plunges to record lows almost daily, foreign exchange dealers in Tehran protest against Ahmadinejad's "failed economic policies," riot police use tear gas to disperse protesters.

Asylum-seeking cameraman defected after refusing orders from Iran delegation

Israel to build model farm in South Sudan

‘We happen to be experts in some fields and it’s wonderful to be able to contribute to the process of nation-building,’ says the Israeli ambassador.
"Israel is planning to build a model agricultural village in the new nation of South Sudan, aimed at teaching local farmers how Israel’s breakthrough agricultural methods and technologies can help the fledgling African nation survive and thrive."

Israel Daily Picture: Young Jewish Men and Women Are "Recruited" in 1939 in Response to British Restrictions on Immigration to Palestine
Presumably, they would later serve in the Jewish militias such as the Haganah or Irgun, and many would join the British army to fight the Nazis in Europe and North Africa. An estimated 30,000 Jews of Palestine fought in the British Army in World War II.

Also:
Hezbollah members (and probably Syrians) die in mysterious blast in Lebanon

Dozens of Syrians approach Golan border; tourists evacuated

Hilarious quote in JPost as Haaretz employees argue against a strike: (h/t JK)

A senior editor questioned the wisdom of strike, remarking: "What if, with no paper, people realize [that] they can do without Haaretz?"

Introduction to Krav Maga (or, an IDF woman kicking butt)

There was a demonstration against Mahmoud Abbas in Ramallah last night, the Palestine Times and Firas Press reported.

PA police stopped the protesters from marching to the presidential compound.

The protesters chanted against Oslo, to release political (i.e., Hamas) prisoners and, as always, to destroy Israel.

The protesters chanted, "Ya Abbas Leave, Leave," "Down with the olive branch, long live the rifle" and "From Ramallah to Sakhnin, Palestine will be Free." (Sakhnin is an Arab town in Israel.)

When people say they want an "Arab spring" in Ramallah, just remember: As corrupt, hypocritical and dictatorial as the PA is today, there seems absolutely no chance that it would be replaced with anything better.

What kind of a "peace process" is it when the best choice is to sign an agreement with a morally bankrupt, lying Fatah that could be replaced at any moment by leaders who are even worse?

Breaking: Mass anti-government protests in Tehran (video)

BBC:

Riot police in Iran have clashed with protesters in the capital over sharp falls in the currency, the rial.

Tear gas was used to disperse the demonstrators, some of whom were setting fire to tyres and rubbish bins. There were many arrests, reports say.

Eyewitnesses told the BBC that scores of people gathered outside the central bank, calling for the governor to stand down, chanting anti-government slogans.

The rial has plummeted to record lows against the US dollar in recent days.

Money dealers were joined by traders from the nearby central bazaar, reports say.

Eyewitnesses told BBC Persian that riot police fired tear gas to disperse the crowds.

Reports say many shops in the central Grand Bazaar have brought down their shutters in sympathy with the demonstrators.

Traders are angry at the lack of direction from the government in the crisis, which they say has led to more instability in prices, making trading almost impossible, commentators say.

A Facebook user, FreedomMessenger20, is documenting the anti-regime protest in Tehran today:

Protesters calling on store-owners in the bazaar to close their shops:

(h/t Tundra Tabloids)

Islamic Jihad brags that it can veto any peace agreement

Islamic Jihad is now celebrating its 25th anniversary in Gaza, with parades and other public events to publicize its commitment to destroying Israel. The celebrations are done with the full permission of Hamas, which even featured them on its website.

(According to the photo's EXIF information, that last picture may have been taken in 2009, and Islamic Jihad wanted to make the parade look more impressive.)

In an interview with Islamic Jihad media, the leader of the movement, Sheikh Ibrahim al-Najjar, "Abu Hazim," bragged that Islamic Jihad has not budged one iota from its founding principles of destroying Israel and replacing it with an Islamist state.

Najjar said that this year's anniversary festival was a "referendum of resistance," meaning that it is proof that Palestinian Arabs still embrace terror as their means of destroying Israel.

He also bragged:

Praise be to God, the al-Quds Brigades of military force [of Islamic Jihad] is powerful enough to dictate its will to invalidate any agreement that does not do justice to the Palestinians and did not give them them the right to return to their entire land.

People who still cling to the idea of the sacred "peace process" never really discuss Islamic Jihad and how it has effective veto power even in the unlikely event that Palestinian Arab leadership can accept a reasonable compromise with Israel.

In the wisdom of Oslo, it is better to leave all the impossible issues for the end of the "process."

Video of Muslims harassing peaceful Jews on Temple Mount

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

As Arutz-7 reports:

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

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

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

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

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

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

Here are some of those "stormers:"

Scary looking, aren't they?

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

From Palestine Press Agency:

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Links while I was out

From Ian, October 1:

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

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

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

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

Attempted Palestinian Terror Shooting on Israeli Road

British government pledges new cooperation with the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation

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

Jewish communities under threat in Malmo, Sweden?

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

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

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

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

Morsi’s message

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

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

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

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

Religions not the same by MICHAEL COREN

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

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

Attackers of Hindu temple charged with blasphemy

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

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

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

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

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

Amazon under fire over Nazi camp puzzle

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

Morissette to close out tour in Israel

Gaza Mom Chooses Israeli Hospital to Save Baby

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

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

And from October 2:

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

The Afghanistanization of the Middle East

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

Study: UN misconduct goes unpunished

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

Turkey’s Ruling Party Celebrates Hamas

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

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

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

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

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

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

From Avi Mayer in Storify:

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

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

Akamaihd

16 hours ago

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

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

91177info

9 hours ago

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

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

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

[...]
Disturbing Silence

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

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

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

From WSJ:

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

(h/t EBoZ)